High Occupancy Fueling Apartment Job Market
While new apartment deliveries have slowed, the apartment industry job market remains strong in 2019. This is because national vacancy rates remain around 4.7%. At the same time, absorption of existing units is outpacing new apartment delivers. As a result, the demand for professionals to manage and maintain properties at or near full occupancy is high. In fact, more than one third of all real estate job postings are from the apartment industry.
During the first quarter of 2019, approximately 35.9% of all real industry jobs postings came from the apartment industry. Given that 30.2% of real estate job postings came from the apartment industry from 2013 to 2018, this is a significant increase. In addition to these strong numbers, here are even more facts indicating the apartment industry job market remains strong.
Property management jobs top the list!
While the overall apartment industry job market remains strong, property management specific jobs are seeing solid growth. During the first quarter of 2019, approximately 25.4% of all apartment industry job postings were for property management related positions. This represents a 2.4% year over year increase from 2018 when 22.8% of apartment industry job postings were for property management positions.
Want to move to LA, DC, or Dallas?
Apartment management job listings are most heavily concentrated in Los Angeles, Dallas, and Washington, D.C. In fact, 15.4% of all apartment jobs in the country are located in one of these three cities. Los Angeles leads the list at 5.9% followed by Dallas at 5.3% and Washington, D.C. at 4.2%. While the top three are unchanged from 2018, Dallas jumped ahead of Washington, D.C. for the 2nd spot on the list.
How about Denver, San Antonio, or Austin?
While 15.4% of all apartment jobs were in Los Angeles, Dallas, or Washington, D.C. the reality is there are plenty of other real estate jobs in those markets. In Denver, San Antonio, and Austin, at least 48% of real estate jobs come from the apartment industry. Denver leads the list, where approximately 49.6% of every real estate job posting comes form the apartment industry. This number is fueled by a combination factors. First and foremost, vacancies in Denver have dropped from 8% to 6.9% in the last year. At the same time, absorption of existing units is outpacing delivery of new units. Together, these factors are leading to a tremendous amount of apartment industry jobs in the Denver market.
How important is knowing Yardi?
According to National Apartment Association data, demand for Yardi skills is increasing. From 2014 to 2019, there was a 7.4% increase in apartment industry job postings requiring Yardi skills. As a result, mastering Yardi has become a proven way to get your resume noticed during an apartment manager job hunt. While they did not make the list, learning how to use other property management software, like RealPage or Buildium, would also help apartment managers find a new job or increase their salary.
Can you find a maintenance technician?
While property management jobs are currently tops among apartment industry job postings, maintenance positions are the most in demand over the past 5 years. In fact, there was a 3.1% increase in job postings with the title “Maintenance Technician” over the past 5 years. This was followed by a 1.3% increase in postings for the job title “maintenance supervisor”. Finding and hiring maintenance staff remains a constant challenge, often requiring property managers to use a multifamily staffing company to fill open positions.
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