San Antonio Multifamily Report – Summer 2020

The COVID-19 outbreak deeply impacted the metro's rental market, with occupancy sliding to 92.1 percent.

San Antonio rent evolution, click to enlarge

San Antonio rent evolution, click to enlarge

San Antonio’s multifamily market performance has slowed considerably amid the COVID-19 outbreak. The average rent in the metro fell 0.2 percent on a trailing three-month basis through June—10 basis points higher than the U.S. rate—with the $1,043 average well behind the $1,457 national figure. The occupancy rate in stabilized properties slid 120 points, to 92.1 percent, year-over-year through May.

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All employment sectors except construction marked contractions year-over-year through May, highlighting the immediate economic impact of the health crisis. Of the 2.8 million unemployment claims filed across the state through July, more than 188,000 were filed in San Antonio, according to the Real Estate Center at Texas A&M University. The unemployment rate, which indicated a tight labor market at the end of 2019, rose to 13.2 percent in April. In May, Gov. Greg Abbott reopened Texas, but a recent spike in cases could lead to reinstated restrictions.

San Antonio sales volume and number of properties sold, click to enlarge

San Antonio sales volume and number of properties sold, click to enlarge

Multifamily investment during the first half of 2020 totaled just $259 million, significantly trailing last year’s sales total of $1.5 billion. The per-unit price rose 1.0 percent to $101,563, well behind the $163,799 national average. Meanwhile, developers delivered 2,781 units and had another 9,057 underway. We expect rents to decrease by 1.9 percent by the end of the year.

Read the full Yardi Matrix report.