By Anca Gagiuc | Multi-Housing News
Robust supply growth continued to challenge Phoenix’s multifamily market, marking the third-weakest rent performance among the top 30 metros tracked by Yardi Matrix. Average advertised asking rents fell 2.7 percent year-over-year, to $1,553 in July. On a trailing three-month basis through July, rates in the metro were down 0.2 percent. Phoenix’s occupancy rate in stabilized properties slid 20 basis points year-over-year, to 93.1 percent in June.
Employment growth was 0.2 percent year-over-year through May, slower than the 0.8 percent U.S. rate. Phoenix’s workforce grew by 14,300 net jobs. Gains were recorded in only four sectors, led by education and health services (20,300 jobs) and government (4,800). Six sectors lost 13,100 jobs combined, with the largest losses in transportation and utilities (-4,200). Meanwhile, the metro’s unemployment rate stood at 4.0 percent in June, 10 basis points below the U.S. and state figures. The metro had several projects underway that will sustain its economic development, including Mayo Clinic’s $1.9 billion expansion at its Phoenix campus and Amkor Technology Inc.’s $2 billion chip packaging and test facility.
