Student Housing Lift Likely on the Way in Athens, GA

Apartment occupancy in Athens-Clarke County, GA has been steadily trending up over the last 13 years. Still, this market, which is home to about 15,000 apartment units, experiences consistent seasonality in apartment occupancy, coinciding with University of Georgia students snaping up available apartments every autumn. The University of Georgia, located in Athens, has a total enrollment of over 40,000 students. While the late spring and early summer months typically mark the trough of apartment occupancy, the late summer and early fall months, conversely, mark a significant upswing in absorption, according to data from RealPage Market Analytics. From June – when students generally move out – to September – when they generally move back in – marks the most significant occupancy shifts in Athens. Athens tends to see about a 100-basis point (bps) jump in occupancy from June to September, although that surge has been less severe since the onset of the COVID-19 outbreak in 2020. Still, if averaging the uptick in occupancy from June to September from 2020, a 30-bps jump can be expected from the June reading of 93.6%.