Rent Increases Expected To Slow, Says Apartment Industry

By Dana Gentry, Nevada Current

April 11, 2022

First quarter apartment rents increased by 21 percent year-to-year in Southern Nevada but are beginning to stabilize, according to a report from the Nevada State Apartment Association, which represents the multifamily housing industry in Nevada. Rents are expected to increase in the coming year, but more slowly than recent years.

CoStar, a commercial real estate analyst contracted by the NVSAA, projects an increase of 5.5% in rents by the end of 2022. Previous forecasts from CoStar put the increase at 7% to 8%, according to NVSAA executive director Susy Vasquez, who said in a release the market is beginning to more closely reflect pre-pandemic conditions.

Asking rents in the first quarter of 2022 averaged $1,451 per month, according to the report, up from $1,198 a year ago. The national average was $1,584.

Vacancy rates for the first quarter registered 5.4%, up 0.3% from the same time in 2021.

Apartment construction is expected to “catch up to demand” by the end of 2022, according to the NVSAA, which says more than 7,000 units were under construction in the first quarter, compared with 3,800 units a year ago.

Rapidly rising home values that have priced working families earning less than about $85,000 a year out of the purchasing market are placing additional strain on rentals.

Elected officials, including some running for statewide office, are declining to rule out rent control as a potential solution.

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