SANTA CLARA, Calif.,
March 16, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Rents
continued their downward spiral in many of the nation's largest
housing markets in February, but they may have hit their bottom,
according to the realtor.com® Monthly Rental Report
released today. For those looking to move or return to the big
city, acting now while rents are still at their lowest could mean
saving thousands of dollars a year.
"Housing markets like San
Francisco, Santa Clara,
Calif., Boston and
Seattle have seen rents decline by
double digits since the start of the pandemic and rent growth
across the nation remains lower than pre-COVID levels. However, the
downward trend is leveling off and rents may have hit their bottom
in many markets," said realtor.com® Chief Economist
Danielle Hale. "With the COVID-19
vaccination rates improving, returning to work and the city may be
on the minds of many. For those looking to capitalize on
rock-bottom rents, finding a new unit now could make sense. You'll
not only save money, you'll have less competition finding the
location that's best for you."
In February, the U.S. median rent, which is calculated by
averaging the median rent of the 50 largest metros, was up 0.6% to
$1,452, well below its pre-COVID
growth rate of 3.2%. With rent growth stabilizing over the past
three months, rents could begin to return to pre-COVID growth rates
in the coming months.
Rent savings in tech markets could add up to thousands of
dollars
Although rents have begun to stabilize, and even
rise by double-digits in some markets like New Orleans, Sacramento, Calif., Memphis and Riverside, Calif., where rents rose 18.7%,
11.0% 10.8% and 10.7%, respectively in February, that's not the
case in many of the nation's largest tech hubs.
In San Jose, Calif., situated
in the heart of Silicon Valley, median rent was $2,690 in February, 13.2%, or $410, less than a year earlier. Renters signing a
12-month lease today would save nearly $5,000, compared to pre-pandemic prices for the
same unit. They'd save almost as much in neighboring San Francisco, where rents were down nearly
13% from a year ago in February.
Tech hub markets - Typical savings versus last year's
rents
Metro
|
Median
Rent Feb.
2021
|
Median
Rent Feb.
2020
|
Monthly
Rent
Savings
|
12-Month
Lease
Savings
|
San
Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, Calif.
|
$2,690
|
$3,100
|
$410
|
$4,920
|
San
Francisco-Oakland-Hayward, Calif.
|
$2,611
|
$2,986
|
$375
|
$4,500
|
Boston-Cambridge-Newton, Mass.-N.H.
|
$2,250
|
$2,449
|
$199
|
$2,388
|
Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, Wash.
|
$1,735
|
$1,906
|
$171
|
$2,052
|
Los Angeles-Long
Beach-Anaheim,
Calif.
|
$2,485
|
$2,645
|
$160
|
$1,920
|
Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, D.C.
-Va.-Md.-W.Va.
|
$1,848
|
$1,950
|
$102
|
$1,224
|
February 2021 rental data - 50
largest metropolitan areas
Metro
|
Median Rent
(Overall)
|
Median Rent
YoY (Overall)
|
Atlanta-Sandy
Springs-Roswell, Ga.
|
$1,430
|
4.0%
|
Austin-Round Rock,
Texas
|
$1,330
|
-2.9%
|
Baltimore-Columbia-Towson, Md.
|
$1,549
|
3.6%
|
Birmingham-Hoover,
Ala.
|
$995
|
5.3%
|
Boston-Cambridge-Newton, Mass.-N.H.
|
$2,250
|
-8.1%
|
Buffalo-Cheektowaga-Niagara Falls, N.Y.
|
$1,090
|
-4.8%
|
Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia, N.C.-S.C.
|
$1,304
|
2.0%
|
Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, Ill.-Ind.-Wis.
|
$1,600
|
-2.7%
|
Cincinnati,
Ohio-Ky.-Ind.
|
$1,099
|
7.2%
|
Cleveland-Elyria,
Ohio
|
$1,080
|
8.5%
|
Columbus,
Ohio
|
$1,069
|
3.8%
|
Dallas-Fort
Worth-Arlington, Texas
|
$1,270
|
0.4%
|
Denver-Aurora-Lakewood, Colo.
|
$1,639
|
-2.1%
|
Detroit-Warren-Dearborn, Mich.
|
$1,145
|
6.4%
|
Hartford-West
Hartford-East Hartford, Conn.
|
$1,450
|
2.8%
|
Houston-The
Woodlands-Sugar Land, Texas
|
$1,199
|
0.1%
|
Indianapolis-Carmel-Anderson, Ind.
|
$1,055
|
7.8%
|
Jacksonville,
Fla.
|
$1,188
|
4.2%
|
Kansas City,
Mo.-Kan.
|
$1,055
|
0.6%
|
Las
Vegas-Henderson-Paradise, Nev.
|
$1,250
|
6.0%
|
Los Angeles-Long
Beach-Anaheim, Calif.
|
$2,485
|
-6.0%
|
Louisville/Jefferson
County, Ky.-Ind.
|
$984
|
6.4%
|
Memphis,
Tenn.-Miss.-Ark.
|
$1,025
|
10.8%
|
Miami-Fort
Lauderdale-West Palm Beach, Fla.
|
$1,865
|
-0.5%
|
Milwaukee-Waukesha-West Allis, Wis.
|
$1,335
|
-1.8%
|
Minneapolis-St.
Paul-Bloomington, Minn.-Wis.
|
$1,425
|
-1.7%
|
Nashville-Davidson-Murfreesboro-Franklin,
Tenn.
|
$1,323
|
-0.5%
|
New Orleans-Metairie,
La.
|
$1,324
|
18.7%
|
New
York-Newark-Jersey City, N.Y.-N.J.-Pa.
|
$2,395
|
4.1%
|
Oklahoma City,
Okla.
|
$784
|
-0.8%
|
Orlando-Kissimmee-Sanford, Fla.
|
$1,319
|
-2.8%
|
Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington,
Pa.-N.J.-Del.-Md.
|
$1,550
|
3.3%
|
Phoenix-Mesa-Scottsdale, Ariz.
|
$1,388
|
3.6%
|
Pittsburgh,
Pa.
|
$1,240
|
-2.0%
|
Portland-Vancouver-Hillsboro, Ore.-Wash.
|
$1,494
|
-1.5%
|
Providence-Warwick,
R.I.-Mass.
|
$1,650
|
7.1%
|
Raleigh,
N.C.
|
$1,239
|
3.2%
|
Richmond,
Va.
|
$1,130
|
3.7%
|
Riverside-San
Bernardino-Ontario, Calif.
|
$1,880
|
10.7%
|
Rochester,
N.Y.
|
$1,175
|
7.8%
|
Sacramento-Roseville-Arden-Arcade, Calif.
|
$1,665
|
11.0%
|
San Antonio-New
Braunfels, Texas
|
$1,053
|
1.8%
|
San Diego-Carlsbad,
Calif.
|
$2,205
|
0.7%
|
San
Francisco-Oakland-Hayward, Calif.
|
$2,611
|
-12.6%
|
San
Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, Calif.
|
$2,690
|
-13.2%
|
Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, Wash.
|
$1,735
|
-9.0%
|
St. Louis,
Mo.-Ill.
|
$1,084
|
8.4%
|
Tampa-St.
Petersburg-Clearwater, Fla.
|
$1,396
|
7.8%
|
Virginia
Beach-Norfolk-Newport News, Va.-N.C.
|
$1,235
|
8.3%
|
Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, D.C.-Va.-Md.-
W.Va.
|
$1,848
|
-5.2%
|
Methodology
Rental units include apartment communities
as well as private rentals (condos, townhomes, single-family
homes). All units were studio, one-bedroom, or two-bedroom units.
National rents were calculated by averaging the medians of the 50
largest metropolitan areas.
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Media Contact
Janice
McDill, janice.mcdill@move.com
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SOURCE realtor.com