Salt Lake City’s multifamily market continues to produce gains, fueled by the favorable demographic picture, robust employment and Utah’s strong economy. A healthy influx of professional jobs and the area’s relative affordability are attracting residents and lifting demand for apartments.

The metro’s universities and medical institutions beget a skilled workforce that attracts technology and medical firms, while large firms such as Goldman Sachs, Adobe, eBay and accounting’s Big Four have established outposts that hire many of these graduates. Furthermore, the number of high-paying science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) jobs is expected to grow over the next few years.

Out-of-state investors, particularly those from California, are being lured to the area by the operating costs, which are a fraction of what they would be in neighboring metros. Investor interest is expected to grow, especially now that Google Fiber has flipped the switch on its super-high-speed network in Salt Lake City, providing service in the city center starting in August. Apartment development is on pace to reach another high in 2016, with more than 6,700 units under construction. Most of the development is occurring along the downtown region, with headline projects underway in Salt Lake City, Orem and Sandy. The supply of new rentals is outstripping construction, with metrowide vacancy dropping below 4 percent.