For the first time in four years, rental prices are falling across the board, according to a new report from Redfin.
Median rental prices fell for all bedroom-count categories of apartments in July when compared with a year earlier. The declines were:
- Zero- to one-bedroom apartments: 0.1%
- Two-bedroom apartments: 0.3%
- Three-bedroom or larger apartments: 2.4%
All three of the categories have now seen dips of at least $50 from their recent all-time highs.
In some cities, rents are falling even faster. Here are markets where rental prices now are plunging.
1. Austin, TX
Median asking rent in this metropolitan area: $1,458 as of July
Year-over-year change: 16.9% decrease
Month-over-month change: 1.2% decrease
After a steep run higher, rents in Austin have now fallen for more than a year. Earlier this summer, Jake Wegmann, a real estate professor at the University of Texas at Austin, told a local radio station:
“It’s bad for landlords, and it’s great for tenants. We should be happy about this.”
2. Jacksonville, FL
Median asking rent in this metropolitan area: $1,465 as of July
Year-over-year change: 14.3% decrease
Month-over-month change: 1.5% decrease
Jacksonville is just one of many Florida cities where rents are declining. In July, Redfin senior economist Sheharyar Bokhari said a large supply of rental units on the market was leading to concessions.
However, he warned the downward trend might not last:
“But renters in Florida should be aware that landlords are grappling with surging home insurance costs, and they may ultimately ask tenants to foot the bill via higher rents.”
3. San Diego, CA
Median asking rent in this metropolitan area: $2,699 as of July
Year-over-year change: 12.7% decrease
Month-over-month change: 0.8% decrease
The inventory of housing for sale in San Diego is growing, and that type of trend often leads to a decline in rental prices.
Alan Pentico, executive director of the Southern California Rental Housing Association, said in a statement:
“While we still face a housing shortage in California, this change in the local market is good news for renters.”
Other metros where rents are falling
Here are the rest of the cities where rents are falling fastest and tenants are catching a break, along with the median asking rent. Percentages are the decrease in median asking rent from one year ago:
- San Francisco, CA: $2,693, 7.6%
- Tampa, FL: $1,750, 5.9%
- Nashville, TN: $1,594, 4.8%
- Los Angeles, CA: $2,772, 4.4%
- Orlando, FL: $1,772, 4.4%
- Phoenix, AZ: $1,528, 4.4%
- Portland, OR: $1,799, 3.8%
- Pittsburgh, PA: $1,465, 3.5%
- Seattle, WA: $2,075, 3.5%
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