Arizona’s Housing Problem is Not its Lack of Supply

By Alex Girda, Associate Editor

Data from the U.S. Census Bureau has revealed a promising statistic for the local housing market. The numbers are concerned with the amount of housing each state currently has and how it has developed during the past decade. While in 2000 housing units stood at the 2.2 million mark, last year recorded 2.8 million such units. This means Arizona had a 30 percent increase in housing units alone during the past decade.

That places the state of Arizona at number two when considering largest increases in housing units for the 2000-2010 timeframe. It is second only to Nevada, where the recorded growth rate stood at 42 percent. Considering national numbers, there was a housing unit count in 2010 that placed 13.6 percent higher than it did in 2000. Although housing units have increased in numbers, Arizona is also one of eight states that record high homeowner vacancy and high rental vacancy rates, the Phoenix Business Journal reports.

Meanwhile, health care is practically impervious to the market crash. Two medical office buildings have traded hands recently, according to PBJ. Healthcare Trust of America Inc., a real estate investment trust has acquired the two medical office buildings with a parking structure in downtown Phoenix, specifically 21300 N. Tatum Boulevard and The Desert Ridge Medical Campus.