As the first half of 2018 comes to a close, we are already seeing thousands of new apartment units spring up around Denver, catering to the multitude of people moving here from all over the country.
The current rise in apartment buildings in Denver is growing at the second-fastest pace of any in the U.S. From 2000 to 2016, Metro Denver added $12 Billion worth of new apartment buildings, and it looks like Denver is finally catching up to the demand.
https://www.denverpost.com/2018/04/17/denver-apartments-built-second-highest-rate/
There were over 11,000 new apartments built last year, and that has pushed vacancy rates to a point higher than we have seen in years, while rents are starting to flatten out and in some cases decline. This is a blessing to renters who finally have some opportunities to save on rent, but there is a question regarding how many more apartment buildings the city should be building as demand levels out.
In just a 2-block radius near Five Points, there are currently 3 major apartment construction projects happening right now according to the Denver Crane Watch.
https://www.bizjournals.com/denver/maps/crane-watch
These 3 projects alone account for more than 1,000 new units being built in the area. Given the flattening rents, it will be interesting to see how the market reacts once these and the dozens of other projects around the city are being completed.
As thousands of new people continue to move to Denver and the real estate market begins to catch up, it will be interesting to see how housing prices and rent continue to react in the long term. Will Denver become a highly competitive housing market or will there be too many units for the population which leads to a crisis? Only time will tell.