Average monthly rents rose by 13 percent since last year, with the bulk of the price surges recorded in popular metro areas, according to a new report from Redfin.
The report pins the average monthly rent nationwide in October at $1,858, a 12.5 percent year-over-year rise from 2020. Average rent in October in 2020 was only $1,651, but has been rising ever since.
Some metros are seeing sharper rent increases than others. Three markets in Florida — West Palm Beach, Fort Lauderdale and Miami — have all seen the average rent rise a whopping 36 percent year-over-year.
Areas in the New York metro area are experiencing similar growth. In New York City, Long Island’s Nassau County and New Jersey’s Newark, average rent rose 31 percent year-over-year. Those three markets, as well as New Brunswick, New Jersey, average the highest rent in the nation at $3,665.
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Several other major markets have also seen sizable year-over-year rent increases. In Chicago, average rent is up 11.1 percent to $2,450. In Los Angeles, rent has increased 14.4 percent to $3,415, one of the highest in the nation. In San Francisco, rent is up 6.7 percent to $3,314.
Rising rents can contribute to issues around inflation and reflect the crunch of housing shortages in fast-growing areas, Redfin Chief Economist Daryl Fairweather said in the report.
There is one major metro in the United States that can celebrate a year-over-year decline in rent: St. Louis, Missouri saw a 3.6 percent downtick to an average rent of $1,447 per month. Meanwhile, San Antonio has the lowest average rent among the major markets at $1,258.
Good news may be on the way for renters, however. Despite the sizable year-over-year gains in the market, the average rent across the nation is only up 0.8 percent month-over-month — the smallest increase in eight months — in a possible sign of a slowdown among the national rent hikes.
Homebuyers have also faced pricey changes this year, as Redfin reports median monthly mortgage payments were up 3.2 percent month-over-month in October. The figure marks the biggest increase since April and an increase of 16.9 percent for mortgage payments year-over-year.