YELLOWKNIFE - Apartment hunters need not worry too much - the rental market is tight in Yellowknife, but not painfully so.

According to the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC), Yellowknife showed an apartment vacancy rate of 2.8 per cent in the first spring survey it has done since 1996.

Jennifer Eggenberger, property manager of Yellowknife Dairies, said the company has had a zero vacancy rate for a couple of years. - Erika Sherk/NNSL photo

It's a trend that is expected to continue for a while, said CHMC senior analyst Richard Goatcher.

"I expect we'll continue to see some tightening in the market when we do the survey this fall," he said.

Yellowknife Dairies, a local property management company, has absolutely no vacancies at the moment, said Jennifer Eggenberger, property manager.

"Anything three bedroom or larger seems to be in high demand at the moment," she said. "And certainly any units that would take dogs."

Gabrielle Decorby, co-owner of Polar Developments, declined to give the company's vacancy rate, but said she finds the market is fairly balanced.

"I think the supply is pretty nicely meeting the demand," she said.

The average monthly rent for all types of apartments in the city was $1,270 this April, when the survey was taken.

"Rents are rising but not at a rate that should be causing anyone any discomfort," said Goatcher.

Yellowknife Dairies raised rents at the start of 2007, but has no plans for another rent hike soon, said Eggenberger.

Compared to cities down south, Yellowknife's rent levels are staying fairly stable, said Goatcher.

Expected lower vacancy rates in the fall could have an effect, he added.

"I expect that we'll see a bit of a bump up in the rents."

It's hard to draw conclusions about the local market by comparing the numbers to previous years, said Goatcher, as the surveys have been done only in October since 1996.

With the completion of the April survey next year, he said CMHC will be able to tell what rental trends are seasonal, such as the summer time influx of post-secondary students and seasonal workers, and which are part of the bigger picture.

"We'll scrutinize these results when we get next April's results," he said, adding he expects the market to continue to tighten somewhat into the fall.

The market is always cyclical, said Goatcher, so it is just a question of how long this particular trend will last.

When the market gets tight enough, construction will start on new apartment buildings, he said.

"I would anticipate a bit more tightening before we see new supply," he said.