Larimer County ranked fourth of all counties in Colorado for number of multi-family permits issued in 2011.

New data released by the Colorado Division of Housing shows that 470 multi-family permits were issued in Larimer County last year, outranked only by El Paso, Jefferson and Denver counties.

The top four counties accounted for 84 percent of multi-family permits statewide.

The permits are likely for rental housing, according to the Department of Housing, to help alleviate the tight rental market in most of Colorado. In Fort Collins-Loveland, the vacancy rate was 2.3 percent as of the third quarter 2011, the most recent data available.

Greeley's vacancy rate was even lower, at 1.8 percent in the same period. The vacancy rate for the state of Colorado was at 5 percent, the lowest since 2001.