South Florida by the numbers: Record rents go through the roof

“South Florida by the numbers” is a web feature that catalogs the most notable, quirky and surprising real estate statistics.

For local renters, a perfect storm of challenges has made South Florida living dramatically more expensive in 2021. A surge in demand (primarily driven by out-of-staters unburdened by their previous home’s state income taxes), combined with higher-priced home sales and sharp employment growth, has created an exceedingly competitive environment in which landlords can command higher rents while also being pickier about their tenants. Can South Florida’s rental market find a steady supply and demand balance? We explore it in this month’s “South Florida by the numbers.”

24

In some areas of Miami, the percentage that rents have increased over the past year, an unprecedented level of growth. The rental market’s transition from stable to scorching is uncharted, according to experts who have been studying the local market since the 1980s. [TheRealDeal]

$1,831

South Florida’s average effective rent in the second quarter of 2021, a 7.9 percent increase year-over-year. Renters are paying higher rates due to the demand created by job opportunities attracting new residents, according to a report from commercial mortgage servicer Berkadia. [TheRealDeal]

10,028

Number of Miami-area apartments absorbed in the second quarter alone, with only 4,855 new apartments delivered in the same period. Developers are preparing to break ground on another 17,300 units in the next four quarters, which may help stabilize the market. [TheNextMiami]

$28

According to the National Low Income Housing Coalition, the hourly wage needed to generate enough income to rent a two-bedroom Miami apartment ($58,240 annually, assuming a 40-hour workweek for 52 weeks a year.) The median rent for a two-bedroom Miami apartment is $2,360, an increase of 4.9 percent in 2021. [SouthFloridaAgentMagazine]

5

Miami’s ranking among major metropolitan areas for month-to-month rent growth among one-bedroom units. According to Zumper’s July 2021 national rent report, Miami rents increased by 5.3 percent for one-bedroom units, from about $1,695 per month to $1,790 per month. (El Paso topped the list with a 5.6 percent change.) [MiamiHerald]

This column is produced by the Master Brokers Forum, a network of South Florida’s elite real estate professionals where membership is by invitation only and based on outstanding production, as well as ethical and professional behavior.