In 2021 rent was not spared from the impact of inflation. According to CoreLogic’s latest Single-Family Rent Index (SFRI), last year saw an average increase in rent prices for single family homes rise by 7.6%. That nearly triple the increase in 2020, which averaged 2.6%.
Key insights:
- On a monthly basis, rent prices ended the year with a 12% annual increase in December 2021, up from 3.9% in December 2020.
- Lower-priced (75% or less than the regional median): 11.2%, up from 3.2% in December 2020
- Lower-middle priced (75% to 100% of the regional median): 12.4%, up from 3.3% in December 2020
- Higher-middle priced (100% to 125% of the regional median): 12.5%, up from 3.9% inDecember 2020
- Higher-priced (125% or more than the regional median): 11.9%, up from 4.5% in December 2020
- Miami had the highest year-over-year increase in single-family rents in December 2021 at 35.7%, a significant bounce back from its December 2020 growth rate of 1.4%.
- Phoenix and Orlando logged the second- and third-highest gains at 18.9% and 17.9%, respectively.
- Washington logged the lowest annual rent price growth at 5.3% in December.
- Rental inventory has remained limited, the gap between attached and detached rental growth started to close in the latter part of the year, with gains of 11.3% and 12.1% respectively in December 2021.
The takeaway:
“Single-family rent growth had a record-breaking year in 2021, bolstered by increasing employment and low vacancy rates,” said Molly Boesel, principal economist at CoreLogic. “However, as rents make up one-third of the Consumer Price Index, rapid rent growth helped push up inflation in 2021. While rent growth should ease in 2022, inflation may remain elevated for much of this year.”
