Renting a place has been spendy for eight straight months. A look at a Realty.com report shows rent growth has reached double digits for studio and two-bedroom apartments. The median asking price in large markets is now over $1,800 a month which is 19% higher than two years ago at the start of the pandemic.
In the rose city’s metro area, the average cost of rent is $1,740, which is an 11.3% increase year-over-year. Up the road in Seattle, the average cost of rent is more than $2,100 per month, which is a 17.5% increase year-over-year.
Studio apartments continue to catch up with faster recent rent growth, but have the slowest growth over the last two years. Rent by size: Studio: $1,483, up 16.9% ($215) year-over-year; 1-bed: $1,659, up 16.3% ($232); 2-bed: $2,008, up 16.4% ($286).
Tech markets San Francisco, CA and San Jose, CA are the only two markets with cheaper rents than pre-pandemic levels. Median rents for studios and 1-bedroom units are down by 13.0% and 3.3%, respectively, in San Francisco, CA, compared to two years ago. In San Jose, CA, rents are 2.8% (studio) and 0.6% (1-bedroom) lower than their pre-pandemic levels. Rent for two bedrooms increased due to the pandemic.
The pandemic has been going for two years now. In March 2022, rent growth across the top 50 metros hit 17.0% year-over-year for 0-2 bedroom properties. It is the second time in the past 12 months that the year-over-year rent growth slowed down relative to the previous month. The growth rate is holding stable at a high level which is four times as faster since March 2020. In addition, the median asking rent in the largest markets hit another new high, reaching $1,807, which is about 19.3% higher than two years ago.
The most expensive rent in the country is in California. There, an average rent in the San Jose area is at more than $3,000 per month according to the report. San Diego and Los Angeles are also more than $3,000 per month. It is the eighth month in a row where rent growth has reached double digits for 0-2 bedrooms.
