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Hale attributed a lot of this demand to people returning to their offices in the city thanks to vaccines and homebuyers needing to take a break from the red-hot housing market.
“And many are willing to pay top dollar to make that happen quickly, which may lead to even more growth in rents over the next few months,” Hale added.
All unit sizes tracked by Realtor.com hit new rental price highs in August: Two-bedrooms at $1,828, one-bedrooms at $1,524, and studios at $1,338. The pandemic-induced demand for more space also pushed up both two-bedroom (+12.3%) and one-bedroom (11.6%) rent growth to double digits year over year. Studio rents posted an 8.3% year-over-year increase to a median of $1,338 per month.
“Many of today’s renters are future homebuyers, so while rising rents can be viewed as a good thing – a signal of rebounding economic activity – they need to be navigated carefully by households hoping to own a home one day. Whether you plan on buying a home in 2022 or 2027, it’s important to remember that housing costs are typically your largest monthly expense. In other words, what you spend on rent will impact how much you have left to save,” Hale said.