Albuquerque Market News

[Marc C.]

Would love to see more discussion of the status of the rental and housing markets in Albuquerque, New Mexico. Here is some positive news: 

3RD QUARTER 2015 ALBUQUERQUE APARTMENT TRENDS

• EFFECTIVE RENT$754
• OCCUPANCY95.1%
• ANNUAL JOB CHANGE5,500 jobs   <<<<< YEAH, finally. 
• ANNUAL PERMITS293 units
• ANNUAL DEMAND1,671 units
• ANNUAL COMPLETIONS1,373 units

3rd Quarter Albuquerque Performance Highlights

In 3rd quarter 2015, absorption outpaced net supply, 584 units to 281 units. As a result, occupancy increased 0.6 points quarter-over-quarter, to land at a rate of 95.1%. That marked the seventh consecutive quarter for occupancy to remain above 93.5%. Annually, occupancy was up 0.8 points, as demand for 1,671 units outpaced new supply of 1,373 units. Meanwhile, apartment operators pushed rents up 0.8% quarter-over-quarter and 1.9% year-over-year.

Source: MPF Research, www.mpfresearch.com

---------------------------

If we have 5500 new jobs and only 1373 new units, that's a good thing! NOTHING is more important than job growth and "completions" of new units. 

Anyone else have any new data to share? 

[Marc C.]

Also wanted to share the JUST RELEASED HUD Fair Market Rents for 2016 for Albuquerque, New Mexico. They have risen DRAMATICALLY over 2015. These are used by the Albuquerque Housing Authority to set rents for the Section 8 program, but they are also a great insight into what is happening with rents, year-over-year, in any county in the USA. Remember, however, that, FMR's INCLUDE UTILITIES; to see what you can charge when the tenant is paying utilities, you have to get a Utility Allowance sheet. Here is the latest I could find: https://www.cabq.gov/albuquerque-housing-authority...

Final FY 2016 FMRs By Unit Bedrooms
Efficiency	One-Bedroom	Two-Bedroom	Three-Bedroom	Four-Bedroom
$591	$767	$941	$1,352	$1,643

VERY USEFUL INFO! This tells me that I can charge around $1400 for a 4BR home rented to a Section 8 tenant. That's "above market" in my opinion: I see 4BR's renting for $1000-1100 in many areas. That makes renting to Section 8 tenants far more attractive than it was in the past, when FMR's were often below market.