Seattle Sheds 9,759 More Rental Units, adds Only 27 Units

Posted By: Daniel Bannon Advocacy,

According to the latest data from Seattle’s Rental Property Registration database, Seattle continues to experience a decline in rental housing with a net loss of 3,050 properties and 9,759 units since May 2021. During that time, just 27 rental units were added to the market.

Of the properties lost, 2,401 were single family homes which are typically owned by small, individual housing providers. Over the last five years, Seattle has enacted 39 new ordinances that, taken together, significantly increase the risk to small housing provides while increasing their costs. The result is an ongoing departure of rental housing as people sell and leave the market. These homes typically become owner occupied, rather than continuing on as a rental.

May 2021

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

January 2022

Size Class

Properties

Units

Properties

Units

Single Unit

21,363

21,363

18,962

18,962

2 to 4 Units

4,598

12,007

4,155

10,886

5 to 20 Units

2,802

27,249

2,685

25,757

21 to 50 Units

836

26,298

774

24,302

51 to 99 Units

296

20,886

282

19,999

  100 to 200 Units

174

24,423

162

22,534

200+ Units

93

26,658

92

26,685

  TOTAL

30,162

158,884

27,112

149,125

 

RHAWA and WMFHA release an update on Seattle’s rental housing situation by analyzing new and lapsed registrations in the RRIO database.