2021 State of our state and the industry By Peter Madrid
When economic prognosticators gazed into their crystal balls a year ago at this time, little did they know that a health crisis would devastate the globe.
“You are in one of the best markets in the multifamily industry,” proclaimed opening
The economy in general was booming. There was positive job growth. Hundreds of new
speaker Tim Sullivan with Meyers Research.
was strong thanks to a diversity of industries, Morin said. Ten years ago, she added, Phoenix
year.”
relied on population growth through housing,
Looking ahead to 2021, AMA brought its members together at APTUnite, a two-day
financial technology and insurance jobs.
of the Arizona apartment market.
ing at a tremendous rate and that one of our
The COVID-19 pandemic has affected every economy on the globe. In Arizona’s apartment industry, it has set off a domino effect that is being felt by owners and residents alike.
by hurt our dependency on housing.
presented the local market update and state
“We’ve been fortunate that Arizona is grow-
nomic experts are using words such as “un-
Then the Great Recession hit and we were
Today Phoenix is home to more technology,
residents were moving into Arizona daily.
certainty … long-term recovery … recession.”
home building and commercial real estate.
economic outlook. Jessica Morin with CoStar
There was pent up demand for rental housing. As 2021 looms on the horizon, those same eco-
Employment growth in Arizona pre-COVID
He and other experts predicted a “banner
virtual gathering that included the annual Arizona’s apartment industry was booming.
Phoenix economy and apartment industry
major economic drivers continues to be jobs,” Morin said. “Since the first U.S. COVID case in January and the school closures in late
“This has insulated us from another economic shock,” Morin said. While the Valley has seen some employers put the brakes on hiring, it has seen others expand:
March and April, our non-farm employment
Scottsdale-based Axon is building a new
has bounced back.
headquarters and adding 650 high-paying
“We have replaced 46 percent of the February to April job losses, but still have a significant way to go since the height of the pandemic.
At last year’s AMA Perspectives & Projections
A full recovery will depend on improving our
industry outlook conference, the 2020 outlook
current health situation,” Morin said.
appeared rosy.
Apartment News | November/December 2020
jobs; Robin Hood, a fin-tech company, is expanding its Valley footprint; Amazon is hiring more than 1,300 people by the end of the year; and TSMC, a Korean semiconductor firm, is bringing 1,600 jobs to Arizona. –Continued on next page
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