The pace of apartment building in the Colorado Springs area went into overdrive in November, rebounding, at least temporarily, from a slowdown in 2024 that has continued through most of 2025. Industry experts, however, anticipate it will be some years before the Pikes Peak region could see anothe r apartment boom like the surge it saw between 2019 and 2023. In that period, among the hottest for local apartment construction in recent years, developers pulled permits to construct more than 14,000 Springs-area units, historical data from the Pikes Peak Regional Building Department show. The newly opened Avian apartment building on Weber Street in Colorado Springs on Wednesday, December 10, 2025. (The Gazette, Michael G. Seamans) The agency issued permits last month for five apartment projects totaling 1,172 units, about 33% more than the 838 apartments permitted in all of 2024 and about 28% more than the 888 units permitted between January and October of this year, figures show. (Table created by Breeanna Jent/The Gazette with data from the Pikes Peak Regional Building Department) Developers have pulled permits to build the 232-unit Royal Pines affordable apartments complex near North Powers and Union boulevards and the 220-unit Davis Apartments at Research and Chapel Hills parkways, both in Briargate; the Flats at Sand Creek affordable apartments complex, 144 units at North Carefree Circle and Peterson Road; the 336-unit Bradley Ridge affordable apartments complex near South Powers Boulevard and Bradley Road, south of Colorado Springs Airport; and the 240-unit Downtown Flying Horse Apartments at InterQuest Parkway and New Life Drive on the city’s far north side. Despite the drop in the number of planned units in 2024 and throughout most of 2025, thousands are under construction. The regional building department estimated in February there were about 6,000 units being built across the Pikes Peak region at that time. As of the first week of December, spokesman Greg Dingrando said 3,947 units were under construction across the region, most of them in the Springs. Last year, 3,795 apartments received certificates of occupancy, and Dingrando estimates between 3,000 and 3,500 total units will be completed this year. As an influx of available apartments have come online in recent years, vacancy rates have increased while average rents, which have dropped from a high of $1,510 in the third quarter of 2022, have remained relatively flat. If rents drop too much, developers may not pull permits to build new apartments or may choose not to build projects that have been permitted, said Laura Nelson, executive director of the Apartment Association of Southern Colorado. As an influx of available apartments have come online in recent years, vacancy rates have increased while average rents, which have dropped from a high of $1,510 in the third quarter of 2022, have remained relatively flat. (Chart created by Breeanna Jent/The Gazette) In Colorado Springs, average monthly rents fell slightly from $1,420 in the first quarter of 2025 to $1,410 in the third quarter, according to a recent report from 1876 Analytics, an affiliate of Denver-based Apartment Appraisers Consultants and whose statewide apartment market reports are sponsored by the Colorado Housing and Finance Authority. (Table created by Breeanna Jent/The Gazette with data from the Colorado Statewide Apartment Survey 3rd Quarter 2025, researched and authored by 1876 Analytics) Over the same period, the vacancy rate fell from 7.6% — tied for the area’s highest quarterly vacancy rate since the fourth quarter of 2020 — to 7%. 1876 Analytics examines only established apartments and excludes newer properties that haven’t completed their initial lease-ups; to determine rents, its reports focus on market-rate apartments and don’t factor in landlord concessions. “Right now, there’s definitely an imbalance in the supply” of apartments, said B.J. Hybl Jr., president and chief operating officer at Colorado Springs-based Griffis/Blessing, which manages thousands of apartments in the Springs and along the Front Range. That disparity is reflected in market-wide concessions being offered by local apartment complexes to entice new renters, particularly in downtown Colorado Springs, where thousands of new apartments have opened in recent years, he said. But demand for apartments is still high across the region. “We are seeing record absorptions, which means there are more people moving into apartments at a quicker rate than we expected, which is good,” Hybl said. The cost difference between owning a home and renting has widened and it’s less expensive to rent than it is to own, contributing to the record rate of absorption, he said. “It’s a great time to rent, from a financial perspective. We expect to see market stabilization to really start in 2026 and into 2027; as the market starts to balance and more units are absorbed, you’ll see concessions start to fade away,” Hybl said. Many people also prefer renting over owning, Nelson added. “… Senior citizens are retiring and don’t want to own their homes anymore; we’ve seen people rent out their homes and move into apartments; millennials and younger people who tend to save less are generally not wanting to lock into a 30-year mortgage,” she said. It’s difficult to predict if November’s pace of apartment construction will continue through the end of the year and into 2026, Nelson said. “It’s all going to depend on the economy. Will people continue coming here for Department of Defense-related jobs? Will the Space Command headquarters move affect the housing market? It’s anybody’s guess sometimes,” she said. Hybl doesn’t expect another apartment boom anytime soon. “If there’s a pickup in new construction, it’ll really be later in 2027, 2028 and 2029. There’s not another big apartment boom behind this one immediately, anyway,” Hybl said, adding that it takes about three years to conceive and build a new apartment project. Recent state legislation could hamper future apartment construction in the Springs area, Nelson said, potentially persuading developers to build elsewhere with fewer regulations. A state law passed in 2021 extended the eviction process to four months, for example. Another, HB25-1090, goes into effect Jan. 1 and will require businesses to present the total cost of goods, services or rental property as one total number, not broken down into separate fees or hidden charges. Because so many multi-family properties in Colorado run on master utilities meters, there won’t be a clear way for landlords to bill back master utilities for the unit, Nelson said. “I’d not be surprised if a developer says, ‘we’ll build in a more favorable environment.’ If anything, I think that’ll be more of a concern than the market,” she said. But Colorado Springs’ proximity to the mountains, its access to recreation and the pace of local job growth are among traits that solidify the city’s reputation as a desirable place to live and build, Hybl said. “Colorado Springs will definitely continue to be a desirable destination,” he said. ...read more read less