16 cities where tenants can score significant rent savings as apartment prices stay high
- Apartments are as abundant as ever, but rent remained at record highs in October.
- Robust demand offset a substantial uptick in supply.
Record-high rental inventory isn't bringing down all-time-high apartment prices.
The median rent for one-bedroom apartments reached $1,534 in October, matching the peak price set in August, according to a new report from real-estate site Zumper. That's virtually unchanged from September's rate of $1,533, though it's 1.9% higher than the median price from a year ago.
Two-bedroom setups went for around $1,910 in the nation's 100 largest real-estate markets, only a few dollars lower than last month and 2.6% higher than in October 2023.
Apartment supply has reached unprecedented heights thanks to a surge in new rental units, Zumper found. Although that's kept rent from getting even more expensive, it hasn't brought prices in tenants' direction, as a recent report from Rentometer about third-quarter rent attests.
The explanation for this dynamic is straight out of ECON 101: prices have barely budged because demand has risen alongside supply.
While renting is expensive, many believe it still makes more sense than buying, especially since mortgage rates have experienced a resurgence lately. Besides, renters can evidently afford to pay up in a healthy economy marked by solid GDP growth, resilient consumer spending, a low unemployment rate, and strong job additions, which just hit their highest mark since last July.
"Sustained high demand can be linked to several economic factors, including low unemployment, easing inflation, and continued wage growth," said Anthemos Georgiades, the CEO of Zumper, in a statement for the report.
16 cities where rent is reasonableEven though rent is stubbornly high on the national level, there are several cities among the 100 biggest rental markets where apartments are increasingly affordable.
Below are the 16 markets where rent was at least $200 cheaper than the national median price of $1,534 in October and no less than 3% cheaper than it was a year ago. Along with each city are its year-over-year and month-over-month rent changes and its median rent, the savings compared to the national median, and its rank among the 100 top US real-estate markets.
1. Minneapolis, Minnesota
Year-over-year rent change: -9.1%
Month-over-month rent change: -5.1%
Median rent: $1,300
Savings vs national median: $234
National rent ranking: 54
2. Raleigh, North Carolina
Year-over-year rent change: -6.8%
Month-over-month rent change: -0.8%
Median rent: $1,240
Savings vs national median: $294
National rent ranking: 65
3. Baltimore, Maryland
Year-over-year rent change: -6.3%
Month-over-month rent change: -0.7%
Median rent: $1,330
Savings vs national median: $204
National rent ranking: 51
4. Milwaukee, Wisconsin
Year-over-year rent change: -5.5%
Month-over-month rent change: -1%
Median rent: $1,040
Savings vs national median: $494
National rent ranking: 85
5. Glendale, Arizona
Year-over-year rent change: -5.5%
Month-over-month rent change: 0.8%
Median rent: $1,210
Savings vs national median: $324
National rent ranking: 69
6. Jacksonville, Florida
Year-over-year rent change: -4.7%
Month-over-month rent change: 0.8%
Median rent: $1,220
Savings vs national median: $314
National rent ranking: 66
7. Spokane, Washington
Year-over-year rent change: -4.5%
Month-over-month rent change: -1.9%
Median rent: $1,050
Savings vs national median: $484
National rent ranking: 83
8. Arlington, Texas
Year-over-year rent change: -4.5%
Month-over-month rent change: -1.8%
Median rent: $1,070
Savings vs national median: $464
National rent ranking: 80
9. Phoenix, Arizona
Year-over-year rent change: -4.4%
Month-over-month rent change: -0.8%
Median rent: $1,290
Savings vs national median: $244
National rent ranking: 56
10. Anchorage, Alaska
Year-over-year rent change: -4.3%
Month-over-month rent change: 3.1%
Median rent: $1,330
Savings vs national median: $204
National rent ranking: 51
11. Tulsa, Oklahoma
Year-over-year rent change: -4.1%
Month-over-month rent change: -1.1%
Median rent: $930
Savings vs national median: $604
National rent ranking: 93
12. Las Vegas, Nevada
Year-over-year rent change: -4%
Month-over-month rent change: 0%
Median rent: $1,200
Savings vs national median: $334
National rent ranking: 70
13. Chattanooga, Tennessee
Year-over-year rent change: -3.8%
Month-over-month rent change: 0.8%
Median rent: $1,260
Savings vs national median: $274
National rent ranking: 59
14. Fort Worth, Texas
Year-over-year rent change: -3.8%
Month-over-month rent change: 0.8%
Median rent: $1,260
Savings vs national median: $274
National rent ranking: 59
15. Kansas, City, Missouri
Year-over-year rent change: -3.5%
Month-over-month rent change: -1.8%
Median rent: $1,090
Savings vs national median: $444
National rent ranking: 76
16. Albuquerque, New Mexico
Year-over-year rent change: -3.2%
Month-over-month rent change: -3.2%
Median rent: $920
Savings vs national median: $614
National rent ranking: 94
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