Below is a graph showing First Rate Property Management’s 2010 vacancy rate. As you can see, our vacancy is slowly increasing. However, I believe the rental market is improving. Our call volume, showings, and applications are all improving. So why is the vacancy rate increasing? The school year is almost complete and this is when tenants seem to make their moves. So even though our vacancy is increasing ever so slightly, I do see the rental market improving. We are increasing rents when possible.
 

Sales Market
There is just a ton of sales activity going on. I think the excess in inventory has pretty much been swallowed. However, the volume of bank owned and short sale properties is so prevalent, it continues to hurt value overall. Over the past year, I have mostly been selling 4 plexes. Mostly because as the prices drop, the cash performance improves. Really, to me a four plex purchase right now is a slam dunk good investment, if you are willing to hold for a minimum of a few years. The data is showing improvement in this market, but with the majority of recent activity being short sales and foreclosures, I don’t see values increasing yet. I’ll let you know when we do. Meanwhile, we’ll just continue to focus on buying these properties at these great prices while we can.