The median U.S. asking rent fell 2% year over year in November—the biggest decline since 2020—as landlords grappled with rising vacancies due to a building boom in recent years. But rents are still rising in the Midwest, partly because out-of-towners are moving in to get more bang for their buck.
Some landlords are offering one-time discounts like a free month’s rent or reduced parking costs to attract renters. This means the prices renters are paying in total are likely coming down faster than they appear to be in the data.
Rents have also cooled due to economic uncertainty and slowing household formation, along with intensifying affordability challenges driven by inflation and the pandemic surge in rents. Additionally, there are new signs that the economy is slowing; Americans are starting to tighten their belts, which could be contributing to the decline in rents, Fairweather said.
While rents are dropping, they’re still 22.1% higher than they were in November 2019 before the pandemic housing boom and are just 4.2% below the $2,054 record high hit in August 2022.
