Multifamily performance in 2020 was certainly not what industry participants had grown accustomed to in recent years . Even so , despite all of the challenges from COVID-19 and the subsequent response measures , the Greater San Antonio market managed to avoid an average occupancy loss while adding about 1 % in average effective rent . Even more impressive , this was done in the face of increased new supply thanks to higher apartment demand than in 2019 .
As with many parts of the country , the downtown area was harder hit . However , this should not all be attributed to the pandemic . While it is true that absorption was down 30 % for the downtown submarket compared to 2019 , the dramatic decline in average occupancy was more to do with the timing of new supply than a mass exodus out of downtown .
Takeaways