Permits for residential construction statewide were taken out at a 188,160 annual rate in June, up 25% from a year earlier, according to the Burbank-based Construction Industry Research Board. Multifamily permits accounted for a healthy 42% of activity, compared to a usual share in the 30%- or even 20%-range, says Ben Bartolotto, the nonprofit group's economist.
"More than half of all the apartment permits were pulled in three cities—Irvine, San Diego and San Jose," Bartolotto adds. Vacancies in all three of those communities have dropped to about 2%, he notes, as soaring house values have forced more people to rent instead of buy.
Overall, says Bartolotto, California developers are expected to build about 55,000 apartment units in the state this year. Though that would represent a healthy 40% gain from 1999, it would still be far short of demand.
Want to continue reading?
Become a Free ALM Digital Reader.
Once you are an ALM Digital Member, you’ll receive:
- Breaking commercial real estate news and analysis, on-site and via our newsletters and custom alerts
- Educational webcasts, white papers, and ebooks from industry thought leaders
- Critical coverage of the property casualty insurance and financial advisory markets on our other ALM sites, PropertyCasualty360 and ThinkAdvisor
Already have an account? Sign In Now
*May exclude premium content© 2024 ALM Global, LLC, All Rights Reserved. Request academic re-use from www.copyright.com. All other uses, submit a request to [email protected]. For more information visit Asset & Logo Licensing.
