After a tumultuous year of (mostly) rising rents, the latest data drop from Dwellsy shows things have finally stabilized. November rents were essentially unchanged, rising just 0.1 percent (or $2) from October’s prices.
But if you live in one of the country’s most expensive markets, you’re probably not feeling the financial cheer: You might still be paying $1,000 more than many other Americans.
“In November, the median asking rent across all property types in the U.S. was $2,060,” says Jonas Bordo, CEO and cofounder of Dwellsy. “But in some of America’s most expensive cities, asking rent exceeded the $3,000 mark.”
Still, says Bordo, there’s a silver lining if you care to look for it: Many of the priciest rental markets have seen a year-over-year rent increase that’s well below the national rate of 26.4 percent between November 2021 and November 2022.
“Some cities with expensive rents saw prices rise less than 10 percent—or even less than 5 percent—during this time period, which is more consistent with the rate of overall inflation,” he points out. “While renters in, say, Boston, San Diego, Miami, or Napa have to write a hefty rent check each month, they haven’t experienced the same type of year-over-year sticker shock as their counterparts in other areas of the country. So…Merry Christmas?”
For those who are curious about how the rankings shook out this month, November’s priciest city for renters was Santa Cruz, California, with a median asking rent of $3,410. Its closest competition comes from Silverthorne, Colorado, and Naples-Marco Island, Florida.
Dwellsy, the largest home rental listing platform in the country, regularly mines its 13+ million verified residential rental listings for statistics and data. Because Dwellsy allows landlords to post listings free of charge, it has a pool of data that’s more diverse—and more representative of the true rental landscape—than that of pay-to-play listing services. Each month, Dwellsy breaks down this data regionally across the U.S. so renters and landlords can see up-to-date trends in rental housing and current affordability in their area.
Here, Dwellsy shares some of its November data.
The Ten Most Expensive LARGE CITIES for Renters…
Congratulations, New Yorkers—you’re back to being number one! (We know—not the holiday gift you were hoping for.) With a median November asking rent of $3,038, New York edged out San Jose and Boston—previously the first- and second-most expensive large rental markets in the U.S.—to become the priciest large city for renters.
“While the top ten cities on this list stayed the same as last month, their exact rankings shifted around a bit,” comments Bordo. “Within this group, Austin and Denver are noteworthy because they’ve both experienced year-over-year rent growth of over 40 percent. As I pointed out earlier, most other ‘expensive cities’ have seen rent increases below the national average.”
This table shows which large cities were most expensive by November 2022 asking rent.
Rank
Metropolitan Statistical Area
Median November 2022 Asking Rent
Change in Rent Since November 2021
1
New York, NY
$3,038
+ 16.8%
2
Boston, MA
$3,036
+ 8.6%
3
San Jose, CA
$3,000
+ 14.3%
4
San Francisco, CA
$2,964
+ 10.4%
5
Los Angeles, CA
$2,690
+ 14.1%
5
Austin, TX
$2,690
+ 45.4%
7
Miami, FL
$2,670
+ 2.9%
8
San Diego, CA
$2,595
+ 9.6%
9
Denver, CO
$2,505
+ 42.3%
10
Tampa, FL
$2,470
+ 17.6%
…and the Ten Priciest SMALL CITIES
Big news on the small cities front: For the first time in six months, Silverthorne, Colorado, is not the most expensive city in America for renters! In November, Santa Cruz, California, claimed that dubious honor with a median asking rent of $3,410.
“You’ll notice that the top four cities on this list are actually more expensive than New York, the most expensive large market,” says Bordo. “Since many of these smaller cities are luxe resort towns, their priciness makes sense. And while the rankings have shuffled around somewhat since October, there are no new cities on the list this month.”
This table shows which small cities were most expensive for renters in November 2022.
Rank
Metropolitan Statistical Area
Median November 2022 Asking Rent
Change in Rent Since November 2021
1
Santa Cruz, CA
$3,410
+ 17.6%
2
Silverthorne, CO
$3,300
– 5.7%
3
Naples-Marco Island, FL
$3,200
– 2.2%
4
Santa Barbara, CA
$3,125
+ 0.8%
5
Edwards, CO
$2,900
+ 19.6%
6
Napa, CA
$2,847
+ 2.2%
7
Boulder, CO
$2,810
+ 12.4%
8
Oxnard-Thousand Oaks, CA
$2,800
+ 0.0%
9
Fort Collins-Loveland, CO
$2,730
+ 12.8%
10
Punta Gorda, FL
$2,500
+ 35.1%
“If you live in any of these 20 cities, it’s likely your rent will never be what most Americans would consider ‘cheap,’” concludes Bordo. “However, there’s every reason to hope that rent stabilization will continue into the new year. And since the numbers on these tables reflect median asking rent, it is possible to find available properties in these markets for less. So check those rental listings twice—you may just score a new, surprisingly affordable hall to deck this holiday season.”
Report by Jonas Bordo:
Jonas Bordo is the CEO and cofounder of Dwellsy, the free residential rental marketplace that makes it easy to find hard-to-find rentals. Prior to cofounding Dwellsy, Jonas was a senior executive at several leading real estate firms including Essex Property Trust and BentallGreenOak, and was with the Boston Consulting Group after graduating with his MBA from the University of Chicago Booth School of Business. Jonas has had the good fortune to build, rebuild, and lead amazing teams across the multifamily and commercial real estate operational and strategic spectrum; orchestrate the sale of several businesses; develop a strategic plan for one of the world’s leading symphony orchestras; implement a Toyota production system; and create more than 40 brands. He is husband to Rosalind and father to Bailey, Zach, and Thea; an avid hiker; a lifelong learner; and a maker of things, sometimes out of wood.