Renters in the United States had a rough go of it in 2021, with rental prices rising in double-digits in much of the country and the Supreme Court blocking a moratorium on evictions that was enacted during the early months of the COVID-19 pandemic. But rental rates in some urban areas headed the other way, declining in 2021 despite the national trend.
By Vance Cariaga
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Those lower rents occurred in some of the nation’s biggest cities, too — including Atlanta and Philadelphia — according to a new report from Rent.com. Most of the cities are located in the South and Midwest, though a couple in the Northeast and West also appear on the list.
The Rent.com report, released on Friday, found that the average national rent for a one-bedroom apartment increased 22% over the last year, while the rent for a two-bedroom apartment climbed 18%.
Those figures are close to what other industry sources have found. A new report from Redfin found that the average monthly listed rents in the U.S. rose 14.1% year over year to $1,877 in December. That was the largest annual gain since at least February 2019, when Redfin started tracking rental data.
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If you are hunting for a market where rents are going down instead of up — and have the ability to move, perhaps because of a remote working arrangement — here are 10 cities listed by Rent.com where average rents declined over the past year:
Toledo, Ohio
- 1-BR rent price YoY change: -23.03%
- 2-BR rent price YoY change: -0.45%
Huntsville, Alabama
- 1-BR rent price YoY change: -18.5%
- 2-BR rent price YoY change: -5.01%
Kansas City, Missouri
- 1-BR rent price YoY change: -11.76%
- 2-BR rent price YoY change: -8.74%
Lincoln, Nebraska
- 1-BR rent price YoY change: -11.54%
- 2-BR rent price YoY change: -18.43%
Indianapolis, Indiana
- 1-BR rent price YoY change: -9.03%
- 2-BR rent price YoY change: -3.28%
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
- 1-BR rent price YoY change: -7.71%
- 2-BR rent price YoY change: -22.47%
Atlanta, Georgia
- 1-BR rent price YoY change: -6.99%
- 2-BR rent price YoY change: -2.42%
Durham, North Carolina
- 1-BR rent price YoY change: -3.30%
- 2-BR rent price YoY change: -12.81%
Saint Paul, Minnesota
- 1-BR rent price YoY change: -1.77%
- 2-BR rent price YoY change: -3.23%
Tacoma, Washington
- 1-BR rent price YoY change: -1.59%
- 2-BR rent price YoY change: -2.43%
