A Note on Occupancy Turnover in Rental Housing Units

Occupancy turnover results from household mobility. The importance of life-cycle effects on intra-urban household migration are emphasized, just as have other studies on the subject. In addition, the analysis explicitly addresses the role of household moving costs and landlord occupancy turnover costs as they affect rents charged existing tenants. The empirical results indicate that landlords grant existing tenants long-term rent discounts to reduce occupancy turnover and further suggest that the incentives of landlords to reduce turnover vary based on the age of the housing unit. The results are of special significance in the evaluation of community development programs.