Denver Apartment Construction Reaching for the Sky

Metro Denver had the second-largest gain in apartment construction overall since 2000, according to a report from rental website Apartment List. In dollar terms, Denver added $12 billion in apartments between 2000 and 2016.

Between 2000 and 2016, metro Denver's share of multifamily permits eclipsed national levels. Denver's share of multifamily permits grew 11.9 percent to 53.3 percent over that period, whereas the national share is 18 percent. The Apartment Association of Metro Denver (AAMD) reported in January 2018 that apartment completions soared 38 percent to 13,348 for 2017 from 2016. AAMD predicts that Denver may possibly see between 10,000 and 12,000 deliveries in 2018, The Denver Post reports.

“It’s hard to quantify an exact rent impact, but it’s safe to say that in the face of rapidly increasing demand, Denver’s rent growth would have been more extreme without these additional units,” said Chris Salviati, a housing economist at Apartment List. Rents in metro Denver are up 62.5 percent between 2000 and 2016, according to the Consumer Price Index for Denver-Aurora-Lakewood. That is higher than the 42.4 percent increase in consumer prices overall across that same time period.

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