NoCo vacancies tighten, rents soar

DENVER – Bucking a statewide trend, apartment vacancies in Fort Collins, Loveland and Greeley declined during the third quarter of 2008, according to a state housing division survey. At the same time rents rose sharply during the past year, the survey shows.

While Colorado’s overall vacancy rate rose to 6.6 percent this year from the 5.7 percent reported during the third quarter of 2007, the rate in Fort Collins shrunk by nearly a full percentage point to 4.1 percent from 5 percent a year earlier. Loveland’s rate fell more steeply, from 5.9 percent to 3.5 percent. Greeley landlords reported a decline…