‘Good for renters,’ praises economist as rents continue to fall – the three cities with biggest price drops
THE three American cities with the largest drops in rent prices over the last year have been revealed by a new study.
Falling rents are a sign of easing inflation, a real estate economist says.
While inflation continues to put a strain on the cost of living, there's one part of life that is getting cheaper - renting.
Rents are down an average of 0.7% year-on-year across the nation, new data by realtor.com has revealed.
That puts $24 back into the pocket of the average American each month.
In some cities, however, the drop in rent prices has been significantly more dramatic.
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Austin, Texas is the city that has experienced the biggest decrease in asking rents.
The trendy tech hub has seen a 9.3% drop in rent prices over the last year.
That means the median rent for a studio to two bedroom apartment is now $1,484, down from $1,641 the same time last year.
Austin experienced a peak in rents in 2022 as the city enjoyed a huge influx of new residents.
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The Texas city has become renowned for its vibrant jobs market, cultural scene, and famous new residents like Joe Rogan and Matthew McConaughey.
Second on the list for declining rents is Nashville, Tennessee.
In the home country music, the median asking rent is down 8.3% compared to the same time last year.
That means the average apartment is now listed at $1,517 compared to $1,618 in 2023.
Similar to Austin, Nashville enjoyed a post-pandemic boom.
However, rents are now coming back down to levels that long-time residents are more familiar with.
In close third place is San Antonio, Texas.
The third biggest city in the state has seen median rents go down from $1,276 to $1,232.
That's a decrease of 8.2%.
'GOOD NEWS'
Realtor.com chief economist Danielle Hale exclusively told The U.S. Sun: "Falling rents are good for renters. But it's important to put the size of the drops in context."
She points out the fact that rents are still much more expensive than they were before the pandemic.
"Even though rents have fallen for 10 straight months, the total drop nationwide is small, just 1.4%, and rents are up nearly 22% over the last 5 years.
"Further, the size of the decline in rents is shrinking, suggesting that rents could stabilize in the near future."
She added that falling rents has been "an important factor in easing inflation."
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