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Rents fall as concessions become widespread

The Concord, a 257-unit apartment complex completed in March 2025 in Sarasota, Florida. (CoStar)

By Michelle Rumore

CoStar Analytics

August 19, 2025 | 3:30 P.M.

Sarasota, Florida’s multifamily market is under pressure as new construction outpaces renter demand, driving vacancy rates to their highest levels in nearly a decade.”

As of the third quarter of 2025, the market’s vacancy rate stands at 16.6%, up 200 basis points year over year and among the highest on Florida’s West Coast. Nearly every multifamily area has a double-digit vacancy rate, with several exceeding 20%.

Over the past year, Sarasota has added roughly 4,500 units, bringing the three-year total to 12,000, approximately 25% of the market’s inventory. Another 4,000 units remain under construction, though new starts have slowed considerably. Just 1,200 units broke ground in the first half of 2025, down from over 1,400 units in the second quarter of 2024 alone. If construction timelines hold, completions will taper to around 4,100 units this year, about 85% of the historic completion volume in 2024.

The surge in supply has had a cascading impact on rent growth. Asking rents are down negative 5.1% year over year to $1,930 per month, compared to a 1.0% increase nationally. Effective rents have declined even further, as concessions become more widespread. Roughly half of Sarasota’s multifamily properties are offering concessions, with lease-up properties commonly advertising one to two months of free rent and other perks to offset moving costs.

Higher quality four- and five-star properties are seeing the sharpest rent reductions, with asking rents down 6.3% to $2,090 per month. Multifamily areas with the largest supply and demand gaps have experienced some of the most pronounced drops in pricing. In Lakewood Ranch, where completions have outpaced demand at a two-to-one ratio, asking rents are down nearly 5%.

While the vacancy rate remains elevated, renter demand has improved over the past several quarters. The market absorbed 3,000 units over the trailing 12-month period, up from 1,100 units absorbed over the previous 12 months. The vast majority of demand, 2,800 units, was concentrated in four- and five-star properties.

Looking ahead, new construction will likely continue to exert upward pressure on vacancies through the remainder of 2025. However, the pace of completions is expected to slow, and renter demand is forecast to remain in line with 2024 levels. If absorption keeps pace with completions, the supply-demand gap could begin to narrow in 2026, potentially paving the way for a return to positive rent growth. Still, it may be a year or more before Sarasota sees rent growth close to its pre-pandemic norm of 3% to 5%.

If you would like to connect and speak with someone who does have their finger on the pulse of the market in Sarasota County and the surrounding counties, you can text or call me (Sean Dreznin) at 941.961.8199 or email me directly at TritonCRE@gmail.com.

Ultimately, whether you’re using an agent who doesn’t focus on multifamily or income producing properties like we do or doing it yourself, you can run into some issues or bypass things that may register as red flags to a seasoned and professional agent. I’ve seen some complexes in the past being marketed by residential agents and the only piece of information I can attest to here, I would be the wrong person to hire to sell your home. I don’t sell homes and I’m not that good at it. I am very good at selling multifamily properties and setting buyers up to succeed in income producing properties.