First Quarter 2012 Multi-Family Research & Forecast Report – The East Bay Multi-Family market continues to look healthy and several factors point towards growth in 2012 as the economy continues to improve albeit at a slow pace. Some of these factors include; an improving jobs outlook with growth across several industries, overall population growth in the region, a continued slide in home ownership rates, and rent growth across most East Bay submarkets. Although the East Bay has not experienced the robust tech and social media boom of the Silicon Valley and the SOMA district of San Francisco, conditions are improving. According to the California Employment Development Department, the overall unemployment rate in California was 11.5 percent during the first quarter in the East Bay counties of Alameda and Contra Costa. These counties added 6,200 jobs during the February 2012 – March 2012 period resulting in a blended unemployment rate of 9.8 percent. East Bay unemployment inched up 20 basis points during the first quarter, however the labor force grew by 6.6 percent during that same period, with the majority of hiring coming from the health care and leisure and hospitality services industries.
2012 Q1 | Walnut Creek Multifamily | Market Report
