Rents Rose 7.8% in October—Slowest Growth in 14 Months

Eleven major metros saw declines, with the largest drops in Milwaukee, Minneapolis and Baltimore

SEATTLE–(BUSINESS WIRE) — The median U.S. asking rent in October rose 7.8% year over year to $1,983, the smallest annual increase since August 2021, according to a new report from Redfin, the technology-powered real estate brokerage.

October marked the second-straight month of single-digit rent growth following roughly a year of double-digit gains. It was also the fifth-consecutive month in which annual rent growth decelerated, with rents rising at about half the pace they were six months earlier. Rents declined 0.9% on a month-over-month basis.

“Demand for rentals is slowing because economic uncertainty is prompting many renters to stay put, and persistent inflation is shrinking renter budgets. That’s causing rent growth to cool,” said Redfin Deputy Chief Economist Taylor Marr. “There are signs that inflation is starting to ease, but it will likely be a while before renters see meaningful relief given that rents are still up more than wages.”

Rental Market Summary

October 2022

Month-Over-Month

Year-Over-Year

Median Monthly Rent

$1,983

-0.9%

7.8%

Rents Declined in 11 Major U.S. Metros

In Milwaukee, asking rents fell 17.6% year over year in October, the largest drop among the 50 most populous U.S. metropolitan areas. Next came Minneapolis (-7.8%), Baltimore (-3.2%), Seattle (-2.7%) and Boston (-2.5%). Six other metros, including Austin and Atlanta, also experienced rent declines. By comparison, only five metros saw rents fall In September.

Top 10 Metro Areas With Fastest-Rising Rents Year Over Year

  1. Milwaukee, WI (-17.6%)
  2. Minneapolis, MN (-7.8%)
  3. Baltimore, MD (-3.2%)
  4. Seattle, WA (-2.7%)
  5. Boston, MA (-2.5%)
  6. Austin, TX (-2.3%)
  7. Atlanta, GA (-2.2%)
  8. Columbus, OH (-1.7%)
  9. Los Angeles, CA (-1.1%)
  10. Chicago, IL (-1.1%)
  11. Houston, TX (-0.8%)

Rents Increased Most in the Midwest, South

In Oklahoma City, rents jumped 31.7% year over year in October, the biggest increase among the 50 most populous metros. It was followed by Raleigh, NC (21%), Cincinnati (17%), Louisville, KY (15.8%) and Indianapolis (15.1%).

  1. Oklahoma City, OK (31.7%)
  2. Raleigh, NC (21.0%)
  3. Cincinnati, OH (17.0%)
  4. Louisville, KY (15.8%)
  5. Indianapolis, IN (15.1%)
  6. Providence, RI (13.6%)
  7. Salt Lake City, UT (13.6%)
  8. Nashville, TN (13.2%)
  9. Pittsburgh, PA (12.8%)
  10. San Antonio, TX (10.6%)

To read the full report, including charts, additional metro-level data and methodology, please visit: https://www.redfin.com/news/redfin-rental-report-october-2022/

About Redfin

Redfin (www.redfin.com) is a technology-powered real estate company. We help people find a place to live with brokerage, rentals, lending, title insurance, and renovations services. We sell homes for more money and charge half the fee. We also run the country’s #1 real estate brokerage site. Our home-buying customers see homes first with on-demand tours, and our lending and title services help them close quickly. Customers selling a home can have our renovations crew fix up their home to sell for top dollar. Our rentals business empowers millions nationwide to find apartments and houses for rent. Since launching in 2006, we’ve saved customers more than $1 billion in commissions. We serve more than 100 markets across the U.S. and Canada and employ over 5,000 people.