Asking Rents Records Steepest Decline In over 3 Years

The median asking rent in November declined 2.1% from one year ago to $1,967, according to new data from Redfin (NASDAQ:RDFN). This represents the biggest annual drop since February 2020; the decline from October was 0.6%.

“Renters are finally catching a break,” said Redfin Chief Economist Daryl Fairweather. “Better deals are easier to come by because landlords are doling out concessions and rents have started falling in a meaningful way. Rising supply also means renters have more good options to choose from. With homeownership so expensive, renting has started to lose its stigma. Still, we may see more renters jump into the homebuying market next year as home-sale prices and mortgage rates tick down.”

However, Redin also noted rents are still 22.1% higher than they were in November 2019 before the pandemic housing boom and are just 4.2% below the $2,054 record high hit in August 2022.

Still, the rental vacancy rate rose to 6.6% in the third quarter, the highest level since the first quarter of 2021. Redfin attributed this to an increased quantity of rental housing on the market.