House Vacancy Rate Still Low

Despite last year’s brisk rate of construction, housing vacancies in Orange County remained low through mid-1986, showing that the area remains highly attractive to both home buyers and renters.

A survey by the Federal Home Loan Bank of San Francisco in May found that only 2% of the homes and apartments in the county were vacant, virtually unchanged from the 2.1% vacancy rate found in May, 1985.

The vacancy rate for multifamily housing, including apartments and condominiums, increased to 3.2% from 3% in May, 1985. The survey found that there were 8,168 multifamily units vacant in the county in May with 4,073 units under construction, a 9% increase from the previous year.

At the same time, the vacancy rate for single-family homes decreased to 1.2% from 1.4%, with 5,376 single-family units standing vacant last May. Single-family homes under construction fell 15% to 2,394.

The survey, conducted for the Federal Home Loan Bank by the U.S. Postal Service, shows that the high cost of land in Orange County is discouraging the construction of single-family homes.