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The U.S. apartment market continued to see robust growth in 2013, but investors are keeping a wary eye on looming changes as the 1^st Quarter came to an end in 2014, including the impact from rising supply, rising interest rates and the prospects of restructuring the nation’s two biggest government-sponsored enterprises (GSE’s) Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. This information impacts the moving and storage industry and continues to improve what has been a 5 year down turn in local and interstate relocations according to a spokesperson at Cord Moving and Storage with offices in Saint Louis MO, Memphis TN, Belleville IL and Dixon, MO

For the top 54 U.S. metros, the forecasts are for more than 240,000 new multifamily units will be added in 2014, and a combined nearly 350,000 units in 2015 and 2016. Those projections are on top of the more than 200,000 new apartment units developers added between 2012 and 2013.

The supply wave already is affecting some market indicators, including gradual reductions in rental growth and increases in vacancy, according to the Wall Street Journal. The aggregate fourth quarter 2013 of the obtainable data that cord Moving could muster found that the  data for 50-unit-plus properties shows a year-over-year effective rent growth pattern that is consistent with increasing competition. As landlords adjusted concessions to lure renters, annual effective rent growth declined from 4.9% in the first quarter to 2.7% in last quarter of 2013, after peaking above 7% in 2012.

Several major U.S. markets will see a significant infusion of new apartment units. The building permit data from the U.S. Census Bureau show that Dallas, Houston, Austin, Raleigh, Charlotte and Seattle together account for more than 50,000 units authorized year-to-date as of March 31, 2014 which is a good start.