Doug Ashbury
Northern News Services

NNSL (Jan 15/99) - There's lots of room to move in the city's rental sector.

A recent study shows the city's vacancy is at 11.58 per cent, according to appraiser Lauchlin MacDonald of Stewart, Weir, MacDonald Ltd. Stewart, Weir, MacDonald is a Yellowknife-based real estate appraisal and property assessment company. They value commercial and residential properties in connection with business transactions.

The 11.58 per cent figure comes from a survey of 1,750 units.

The survey, which started as an in-house document, was done over four days in late September, early October.

A breakdown of the rental units showed row housing-style apartments have the highest vacancy rate at 21 per cent.

Remove these units from the survey and the vacancy rate drops to around eight per cent, MacDonald said.

Instead of lowering rents, building owners have been offering incentives, MacDonald said.

Building owners are opting to "ride out" this vacancy situation and "offer more for the same rent."

To increase their bottom lines, building owners are opting for improvements like making their properties more energy efficient, he adds.

This is the first time Stewart, Weir, MacDonald has done a study of this kind. The survey, which did not request rental rate information, precedes the annual Canada Mortgage and Housing study. Last year, that study concluded the average one-bedroom rented for $842 a month.

MacDonald said he found the vacancy rate a bit of a surprise.

But he also knows how quickly the market can turn.

MacDonald recalled back in February, 1980, when he came to Yellowknife he was shown several apartments. There were lots of vacancies. But by May there was nothing on the market, he said.