MARKET SNAPSHOT: Occupancies Increase in Jacksonville, Fla. for First Time Since 2008

Jacksonville, Fla.—Each Jacksonville, Fla. submarket has seen an overall average occupancy increase from the fourth quarter of 2009 to the first quarter of 2010, according to WRH Realty Service Inc.’s Quarterly Apartment Market Survey.

Overall occupancy in the first quarter of 2010 was 86.3 percent—the highest it’s been since the third quarter of 2008.

The Northside and Downtown saw the highest occupancy increases from the previous quarter, 4.1 percent and 3.3 percent, respectively.

There are currently three conventional apartment communities (with 50 units or more) under construction in the Jacksonville area, totaling 1,062 units

Meanwhile, the average rent per square-foot remains steady at $0.85 in the first quarter of 2010, with Downtown seeing an average of $1.24 per square foot at the same time as Arlington and Orange Park both see average rents of $0.78 per square-foot.

Of the city’s 286 stabilized apartment communities, 88 percent are offering concessions. Forty-five percent of properties are offering reduced monthly rental rates, 29 percent are discounting application and move-in fees, 16 percent are offering one month of free rent and 13 percent of the communities are offering two or three months of free rent.

According to WRH’s report, four communities, representing 732 units, were traded during 2009. Average price per unit for those communities constructed prior to January 1980 was $28,021, while those constructed after January 1980 were sold for $51,724 per unit.