Apartment rents plummet in Austin 

Austin apartment rents continue to nosedive, easing concerns that they would skyrocket to no end and price out locals amid frenzied growth during the pandemic.

The median rent for the Austin-Round Rock metro fell to $1,577 in March, marking a 4.7 percent year-over-year decline, which was the largest drop among the nation’s 50 largest metros, Urbanize reported, citing Realtor.com. 

Following Austin on the list were Memphis, St. Louis, Atlanta and Miami, which experienced year-over-year declines of 4.4, 4.0, 3.7 and 3.6 percent, respectively. 

Nationwide, asking rents for studios and one- and two-bedroom units fell by an average of $5, or 0.3 percent year-over-year in March. It was the eighth straight month in which prices dropped. The median rent in the nation’s 50 largest metros hit $1,722, an increase of $14 from February, but that’s still $36 less than the August 2022 peak. 

While unemployment is low, multifamily deliveries in the southern United States increased almost 72 percent, with 273,000 units completed in the year ending in March.

Rental demand remains high in Austin, but oversupply has left landlords no choice but to lower rents. The city has experienced unprecedented population growth over the past decade, especially during the initial years of the pandemic.

The influx ignited a wave of multifamily development across the city, and landlords were able to get away with jacking up rents amid soaring demand. Builders got overzealous, though, as 26,718 units were delivered in 2023, according to Bruce McClenny of MRI ApartmentData, and growth has started to taper off. 

Austin’s average monthly rent fell by 12.5 percent year-over-year in December to $1,985, according to Rent.com. That was the second-largest dip among major U.S. metros. 

—Quinn Donoghue 

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