A small town on the Ohio/Pennsylvania border lost more demand in the past year than any of the nation’s largest 150 apartment markets. The net move-outs from nearly 560 units in Youngstown in the year-ending 3rd quarter was also the market’s worst showing in nearly a decade. This recent performance made Youngstown one of only nine apartment markets among the nation’s top 150 to see net move-outs in the past year, according to data from RealPage Market Analytics. New apartment supply has been absent in Youngstown since 2019 and not long ago, Youngstown was the nation’s occupancy leader. While occupancy here is still tight and well ahead of national norms, the rate has come down a bit since the 2022 peak. Inspiring the weak demand, Youngstown recorded one of the nation’s worst job loss rates in the past year. The market lost 700 jobs in the year-ending October, translating to a 0.3% job base contraction, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. This market also lost some population according to the latest Census Bureau data, with the resident base contracting 0.2% between 2022 and 2023.
