The apartment unit count continues to grow throughout greater Wilmington, according to a recent report.  

Raleigh-based Multifamily Realty Advisors LLC, a regional commercial real estate firm that focuses on and tracks apartment brokerage and development in the Triangle and Wilmington areas, reported that 1,780 new apartment units were under construction as of the end of March in the Wilmington market.

That’s a 415-unit increase from the 1,365 units that were under construction in January, according to the March report.

Of the 12 apartment communities under construction, two – New Providence Park near Murrayville and Park at Three Oak in Ogden – are existing projects that are adding new units.   

An overwhelming number of the new units being constructed and planned are in northern New Hanover County, especially in the Porters Neck and Ogden areas.

The report, prepared by Richard R. Cotton, managing director of Multifamily Realty Advisors, said the Wilmington market has proven to be “exceptionally strong” for new apartment unit growth – adding that the average occupancy rate for the area remains strong at 92 percent.

One of the largest apartment communities under construction is Cambridge Village of Wilmington, a 250-unit development geared toward seniors that’s going up along Eastwood Road south of the Mayfaire Community Center retail development.

Progress is also ongoing on the five-story, 112-unit City Block apartment development at 814 N. Third St. in downtown Wilmington.

And the wave of new apartment development is slated to continue.

There are currently seven apartment projects in various stages of permitting and planning that could add another 1,513 units to the region, the report stated.

Another area seeing increased activity is downtown Wilmington. One of the projects cited in the report is Pier 33 apartments – a $50 million, six-story, luxury apartment community on a 5-acre site in the Northern Riverfront Marina and Hotel development that could add 300 new apartment units to the downtown submarket.