Rental vacancy rates in Gillette are at their lowest level since the 2015 downturn in the economy, but commercial permits are way down.
The Planning Division released third-quarter 2018 figures for vacancy rates. The survey was of 14 participating apartment complexes with 1,513 units total. The city had 113 vacancies in that sample, for a vacancy rate of 7.5 percent.
The average for the year to date is 10.6 percent.
This quarter’s rate is down from 12. 6 percent in the first quarter and 11.7 in the second quarter.
Gillette’s vacancy rate hit a high of 26 percent in the third quarter of 2016. The lowest rate in Gillette since 2013 is 0.7 percent, set in the third quarter of 2014.
Rental markets vary greatly from place to place, but generally five percent is considered healthy. Once vacancy rates get below that, rising rents can eat into renters’ budgets, and they have fewer choices, which can impact local business recruiting efforts.
Once the rate gets above 8 percent, property owners start seeing falling revenue, and it’s a sign of a declining population.
The figures released also show declining valuation of commercial construction permits. Year-to-date valuation is at $3.6 million for eight projects. All of 2017 saw a valuation of $8.6 million for 19 projects.
Valuation of commercial construction permits saw a peak of $82.6 million in 2014, for 23 total permits. It’s declined every year since.
This year’s commercial permits for completed construction projects include Williams Law Office, Dickey’s BBQ, and Thunder Basin High School Maintenance Building.
New housing permits totaled 36. All but two of those have been finished construction, and all completed projects are single-family houses.
The Sunburst neighborhood, which is southwest of S. Douglas Highway and Lakeway, saw the most new housing permits with a total of 12.
Rental vacancies for mobile homes remained high at 16.9 percent for the third quarter. The survey was based on eight mobile home parks, offering 1431 total units.
