Sell Your Commercial Property In Chittenden County, VT

Who rents in Chittenden County

Renters head 25,777 of the 71,456 occupied households in Chittenden County, a 36.1% share in the 2020-2024 ACS. Owners hold the remaining 45,679 households, keeping Chittenden County a majority-owner market overall even as renter demand stays strong. Burlington carries the heaviest renter concentration in Chittenden County, with 10,237 renter households, a 58.5% share of its own occupied homes, far above the countywide average.

South Burlington and Colchester lean more toward owners than Burlington does. South Burlington reports 3,636 renter households, 38.4% of its occupied units, while Colchester counts 1,835 renter households, a 25.9% share. Burlington also holds the largest apartment stock in Chittenden County, with 6,006 units in buildings of 5 or more, a 33.2% share of its housing, compared with 21.4% countywide. That concentration gives Burlington an outsized role in any Chittenden County multifamily sale.

Rents, growth and affordability

Chittenden County's median gross rent climbed 31.5%, from $1,252 to $1,646, between the 2015-2019 and 2020-2024 American Community Surveys. Population in Chittenden County grew far more slowly over the same span, up 4.4% to 169,758 residents, while renter households rose a modest 3.5%.

Supply has not kept pace with demand in Chittenden County. Units in buildings of 5 or more grew 10.0% countywide, yet the rental vacancy rate still sits at 1.3%, a tight figure for any market. Rent burden is heavy too: 50.4% of Chittenden County renters paid 30% or more of income on gross rent in the 2020-2024 ACS.

HUD's FY2027 two-bedroom Fair Market Rent across Chittenden County's New England FMR areas runs $2,165, effective October 1, 2026, well above the county's $1,646 median gross rent. That gap points to continued room for rent growth in Chittenden County's apartment stock, and it gives sellers a useful benchmark when comparing in-place rents against what the broader market will likely bear going forward.

City-by-city comparison

Burlington dominates both renter share and apartment density among the cities covered here. South Burlington posts the highest median gross rent in the table, while Colchester holds the smallest share of units in larger buildings. The figures below come from each city's own American Community Survey profile.

Property taxes and assessment in Chittenden County

Vermont listers appraise property at fair market value each April 1 under 32 V.S.A. Section 4041, and apartment buildings in Chittenden County are billed as non-homestead property. The statewide FY2027 non-homestead base rate is $1.643 per $100 of appraised value, adjusted town by town using each town's Common Level of Appraisal against the Statewide Adjustment.

That adjustment produces real spread across Chittenden County. Burlington's FY2027 non-homestead rate lands at $1.5154 per $100 on a 76.25% CLA, South Burlington's at $1.6287 per $100 on a 70.95% CLA, and Colchester's at $1.1555 per $100 on a 100.00% CLA, per the Vermont Department of Taxes. A seller in Chittenden County should confirm the current year's rate with the town lister or the Department of Taxes before pricing a deal, since the town-level adjustment can shift the final bill noticeably even when the statewide base rate stays flat.

What this means if you sell in Chittenden County

A tight 1.3% rental vacancy rate and 31.5% rent growth give an owner real leverage when they sell commercial property in Chittenden County, VT. Chittenden County's income growth of 31.4% has largely kept pace with rent, which supports continued demand from buyers rather than a market cooling off.

Selling an apartment building in Chittenden County still means underwriting town-specific tax rates, a 50.4% rent-burdened renter base and a security deposit that transfers to the new owner at closing. Buyers active across Chittenden County, including Burlington, South Burlington and Colchester, weigh all of this before making an offer, and a seller who can speak to these figures directly tends to move through due diligence faster.