It’s long been a hot topic: How long can the multifamily market stay as strong as it’s been? We still don’t have an answer, but a new report on apartment rental rates suggest that the multifamily market is cooling … but just a bit.
RENTCafe recently released its April monthly rent report. The report showed that the national average apartment rent hit $1,436 in the month. That’s up 3 percent from 12 months earlier.
Here’s the important part, though: Yes, year-over-year rents increased once again. But the April increase was the smallest one in 11 months.
How are Midwest apartment rents doing? RENTCafe reported that our region had the most affordable major rental market, Wichita, Kansas. Here, the average monthly apartment rent stood at just under $650 a month. Compare that with Manhattan, New York, the least-affordable rental market, where the average monthly rent is a whopping $4,130.
What about in the 20 largest renter hubs of the country? Again, the Midwest boasts some affordable markets In fact, Indianapolis, with an average apartment rent of $861 a month, had the lowest average rent among the 20 largest renter hubs in the nation. Columbus, Ohio, came in second with an average monthly rent of $924.
The most expensive apartment rent in the Midwest, to no one’s surprise, can be found in Chicago. The average monthly rent in April here was $1,913. That’s up $58 from the $1,855 average from a year earlier.
