Last June, we reported on some exciting new development in the Atlanta metro area that highlighted its role as the Southeast’s business center. This year, new data shows that the city has built on that momentum and has enjoyed even more positive growth in the past year.

 

New jobs

Colliers International reported that 110,900 jobs were added in the past year (year ending February 2015) – the largest increase since 1999.“

Employment growth has been increasing progressively since 2013 and Atlanta has some of the highest job growth in the entire U.S. The metro’s $300 billion economy is gaining momentum…”—Colliers

Atlanta attracted new headquarters or expansions from major corporations including Mercedes-Benz, Kaiser Permanente, Cisco Systems and others. In addition, venture capitalists are investing in more technology start-ups in the area, to the tune of $1.2 billion in the past five years.

Economists forecast that Atlanta will add an additional 90,000-100,000 new jobs in 2015, “fueled by growth in professional and business services, including the region’s technology sector.”

Mark Vitner, an economist for Wells Fargo, told the Atlanta Business Chronicle that those jobs bode well for the city’s commercial real estate outlook.

“Much of the gain is coming in professional and business services, a broad category that includes several creative fields in the tech sector,” he said. “Many of these firms are hiring younger folks that desire an urban lifestyle, which is helping drive demand for office space in Buckhead and Midtown.”

He added that walkable urban areas are attractive to younger workers, but that suburban locations are also becoming more “urban” in their layout and appeal.

 

Colliers International recently released its Q1 report on the state of Atlanta’s multifamily market, and rent growth in the area – ringing in at 7.5 percent, year-over-year – has reached its highest point since 1995. The report noted that:“This is the largest increase since 1st Quarter 1995 and well above the national average. The U.S. overall rent growth is 4.6%.

 

 

Colliers also expect rents to continue to increase in the area well into 2016.

 

National data from RentPath also shows an increased demand for apartments as evidenced by the record 3.1 million leads it generated through Apartment Guide, Lovely, Rent.com and Rentals.com.

 

“Apartment search activity on our network of sites is a strong leading indicator of demand for apartment housing, as it’s where renters begin searching for apartment homes,” said RentPath’s Scott Asher.