Midland rents jump from last summer
Surveys shows rents increasing 9.4 to 20 percent in last year
Updated 1:03 pm, Wednesday, August 9, 2017
- average occupancy rate in Midland is 98 percent, compared to 89 percent in July 2016, according to the PBAA survey. Photo: Justin Sullivan, Getty Images" class="landscape" />
The average occupancy rate in Midland is 98 percent, compared to 89 percent in July 2016, according to the PBAA survey.
The average occupancy rate in Midland is 98 percent, compared to 89 percent in July 2016, according to the PBAA survey.
Photo: Justin Sullivan, Getty ImagesRents in the Midland market have increased compared to last year, according to a Permian Basin Apartment Association survey. While the rents could relate to job growth, the change has also prompted some people to seek services from local nonprofits.
Rents ranged from $1.85 to $2.25 per square foot, about a 20 percent increase from July 2016, according to PBAA survey results provided to the Reporter-Telegram last month.
The PBAA has 96 members in Midland, and information came from 39 property representatives’ responses to a market survey.
Another source, Midland’s August report from Apartment List, found rents increased 9.4 percent over the past year. The report also finds rents increasing for six straight months and lists median one- and two-bedroom prices at $970 and $1,220, respectively.
Chris Salviati, housing economist at Apartment List, said Midland’s economy could play a role in increasing rents.
“If an area has jobs, that creates demand for new housing,” Salviati said in a phone interview last month. “And if housing stock isn’t increasing to meet that demand, it results in prices rising.”
The average occupancy rate in Midland is 98 percent, compared to 89 percent in July 2016, according to the PBAA survey. Occupancy rates previously averaged 90-92 percent, according to a Reporter-Telegram report from April.
Some local nonprofits have noticed impacts from the Midland housing market. People coming to the Salvation Army have recently made comments about rents, according to Marsia Galindo, lead monitor for the shelter.
“People that come to work say they can’t afford a place right now, so they stay here… until they get a full check and go and find something,” Galindo said last month.
Another organization, Family Promise of Midland, helps homeless families gain independence. Tom Miller, executive director, said the nonprofit has a waiting list for its services.
Miller said families’ requests for interviews about its offerings usually pick up by the spring and summer months -- after people have spent tax returns and while children are out of school. He said many recent inquiries are related to rents.
“That’s the major reason,” Miller said. “We see a lot of families double or triple up with relatives.”
The nonprofit examined Midland-Odessa market figures from ALN Apartment Data, which found the average effective rent for a two-bedroom apartment was $1,090 in June.
Families spending more than 30 percent of their incomes on housing are considered “cost burdened,” according to the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. Locally, Miller said it’s difficult for low-income families to afford a place to live independently, and some have to sacrifice health care or transportation.
“To have two-bedroom apartments in Midland, Texas, [they would] have to make $20.50 an hour,” Miller said. “That’s really tough for some families, especially if they’re not working in the oil industry.”
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