By Joe Veyera
According to our news partner The Seattle Times, a new study from Seattle-based Apartment Insights Washington shows that Ballard posted the biggest increase in apartment rents for new leases, along with the highest vacancy rate in the Seattle area in the second quarter of this year.
As reported by The Seattle Times’ Sanjay Bhatt:
Apartments in Seattle’s Ballard neighborhood saw the biggest increase in rents. The average asking rent was 12.3 percent higher over the quarter, rising to $1,628.
But Ballard also had a vacancy rate of 8.6 percent, the highest in Seattle. And when new apartments that just opened are included, the vacancy rate shoots up to 18 percent.
The apartment boom in Ballard has led to a doubling of the inventory over the past six years, said Tom Cain, head of Apartment Insights Washington. When the units now being built are complete, Ballard’s inventory will have quadrupled.
New units rent for a premium, and they’re part of what’s driving up market rents, Cain said.
The figures are for rents for new leases (not accounting for utilities or other fees) from a May survey of 50+ unit apartment properties.
In comparison, Seattle area (King and Snohomish County) rents climbed 4.1 percent to an average of $1,284 per month, with rents in the Seattle city limits averaging $1,441. The vacancy rate in both Seattle, and in King and Snohomish counties is at 4.2 percent.
To read the entire story from the Times, click here.