Oil prices have bounced back from recent lows, which could present some relief for the apartment markets that rely on the energy industry for big slices of their economic base. The performances in markets like Houston, Midland/Odessa, Oklahoma City and Tulsa tend to feel the impact from the boom/bust nature of energy trends – some to more extent than others. When crude oil prices fell into negative territory for the first time in history in April 2020, and oil producers were fearing barrel storage capacity would run out in May, concern for these handful of markets increased. After that historic fallout, however, prices scrambled back into the black again quickly, and were trading above $35 per barrel as of June 1. Still, that price remains about $16 below the commodity’s five-year norm.
