The downward trend in the cost of rent hasn’t let up, as new CoreLogic® data shows that U.S. single-family rent prices dipped 5% in February.
Marking the tenth consecutive month of declines, CoreLogic’s latest Single-Family Rent Index found that all 20 tracked metro areas posted single-digit annual rental cost gains, ranging from 7.8% to 0.3%.
To gain a detailed view of single-family rental prices, CoreLogic examines four tiers of rental prices. National single-family rent growth across the four tiers, and the year-over-year changes, were as follows:
- Lower-priced (75% or less than the regional median): 7.7%, down from 12.7% in February 2022
- Lower-middle priced (75% to 100% of the regional median): 5.9%, down from 13.8% in February 2022
- Higher-middle priced (100% to 125% of the regional median): 5%, down from 13.8% in February 2022
- Higher-priced (125% or more than the regional median): 3.5%, down from 12.8% in February 2022
- Attached versus detached: Attached single-family rental prices grew by 5.6% year-over-year in February, compared with the 3.9% increase for detached rentals
The Takeaway
Of the 20 metro areas analyzed, the index shows that St. Louis posted the highest annual increase in single-family rents in February 2023, at 7.8%. Charlotte, North Carolina, and Orlando, Florida, registered the next highest annual gains, both at 7.7%.
Las Vegas and Phoenix saw the lowest annual rent price growth, both at 0.3%.
“Rental cost growth relaxed again in February, but is still increasing nationwide year-over-year,” said Molly Boesel, principal economist at CoreLogic. “Less-expensive metros have emerged as those with the highest appreciating rental costs, as tenants contend with elevated rents and inflation. However, while the top U.S. metros for rental cost growth are increasing annually by about 8%, that is well below the rates of 20% to 40% seen one year ago.”
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