Rent prices made history in March 2023, when year-over-year rent growth was negative for the first time in the post-pandemic era. It had been 36 months (or March 2020—the very beginning of the pandemic in the United States) since the last time that U.S. rent growth fell into negative territory.
Rents decreased 0.40 percent between March 2022 and March 2023, to reach a national median rent price of $1,937. That’s the lowest median rental price since February 2022, when the average renter paid $1,904 per month. Fourteen U.S. metropolitan areas showed an even larger decrease in rent prices than the national median.
14 metros where rent decreased
The 14 metros where rent decreased show geographic variety. Eight (57.14 percent) are found in the geographic South. (Rent. uses the same geographic regions as the U.S. Census Bureau.) The other six metros are split evenly between the West and the Midwest.
Their population size varies too. Birmingham, Alabama, is the smallest at 1.1 million. The largest, Chicago, is home to 9.5 million people.
One thing almost half of these 14 metros have in common is that it’s been expensive to live in them during the pandemic. Six out of 14 metros were among the top 25 most expensive metropolitan areas in the country, as measured by a September 2022 Rent. survey. Renters in two out of the four metropolitan areas with the largest price decreases saw rents fall by double digits.
Rent prices rose by double digits during the pandemic
These two markets’ double-digit rent decreases are notable because they moderate double-digit rent increases during the pandemic. The national median rent price has risen 17.11 percent since March 2021, spurred by historically low rental inventory and a historically hot housing market. That’s an annual growth rate of almost 8.56 percent, which increased rents by $283 a month.
Month-over-month rent prices also rose by double digits for almost a year, beginning in October 2021 and continuing until September 2022. The national median rent price hit a high of $2,053 in August 2022.
National rent growth decelerates at the end of 2022
This explosive rent price growth began to moderate in September 2022. March’s negative rent price growth follows eight months of slower rent price growth and six consecutive months of single-digit, year-over-year rent growth. This gradual slowdown was marked by increased inventory, a cooling housing market and lower-than-average seasonal demand.
Month-over-month rents fell during the same time period. They dropped nearly one percent in six of seven months between September 2022 and February 2023. November was the only outlier; rents during that month went up 1.23 percent.
The four metros where rent is decreasing the most
While renters across the country were happy to see rents decrease almost half of a percentage point in March, renters in two U.S. metropolitan areas saw their rent prices fall much more than the national median. Year-over-year rents in these two metros dropped by double digits.
These lucky communities include one of the most affordable metropolitan areas in the country — and one of the most expensive.
Oklahoma City
Residents of Oklahoma City enjoyed both the cheapest rent and the largest year-over-year rent savings of any metro where rents decreased more than the national median. Rents there fell 12 percent between March 2022 and March 2023.
Oklahoma City renters paid an average of $1,179.75 per month. That’s $254.75 less than the metro’s closest competitor, San Antonio, where the average rent was $1,434.50.
Austin-Round Rock-Georgetown, TX
Rent is considerably more expensive in Austin–Round Rock–Georgetown. It averaged $2,103.50 in March 2023.
But rent prices there fell 10.96 percent year-over-year in March. That likely came as a relief to renters in the 16th most expensive metropolitan area in the U.S.
Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN-WI
Chicago–Naperville–Elgin is the only Midwestern location among the four metros experiencing the largest decreases. Rent prices here declined 9.17 percent between March 2022 and March 2023, reaching an average price of $2,205.75.
Chicago was the 15th most expensive metro in September 2022. High prices likely contributed to its rank as the top city for outbound migration in the Q4 2022 Rent. Migration Report.
New Orleans-Metairie, LA
Renters in New Orleans–Metairie saved 3.04 percent on rent in March 2023. That’s much higher than the national median, but a more modest savings than the other cities in our top four. Rents in the New Orleans metropolitan area averaged $1,791.50 during this survey period.
Metros where rent decreased by 2-2.9 percent
Seven cities logged a rent price decline between 2 and 2.9 percent between March 2022 and March 2023. They include communities across the West, Midwest and South, as well as five of the most expensive (and populous) metropolitan areas in the country.
The big winners include residents of Cincinnati, who saved 2.93 percent, and renters in Birmingham–Hoover, who saved 2.9 percent. Las Vegas–Henderson–Paradise also clocked in with a price drop of 2.41 percent.
The remaining metros in this category are some of the largest and most expensive in the country. Of these four high-cost metros, residents of Sacramento–Roseville–Folsom saw the biggest savings; rent prices dropped 2.76 percent year-over-year to hit $2,625.25. That’s still the most expensive rent price of any of the metros in this survey. But it’s a welcome price break for renters in what was the ninth most expensive metro in the country in September 2022.
Rent prices fell 2.31 percent year-over-year in Atlanta–Sandy Springs–Alpharetta, which was ranked No. 22 of the top 25 most expensive metros in the country in September. Like Chicago, high rent prices were likely a key reason that the metro had the second highest outbound migration number in the country in the Q4 2022 Rent. Migration Report.
Residents of Phoenix–Mesa–Chandler (24th most expensive metro) and Baltimore–Columbia–Towson, (25th on the same list) also saved money on rent in March 2023. Prices fell 2.06 percent in Phoenix and 2.03 percent in Baltimore.
Metros where rent decreased by 1-1.16 percent
The final three metros where rents are decreasing saw prices fall between 1 percent and 1.16 percent during this survey period. That’s much lower than the top cities on this list, but it still represents a savings of more than twice the national median.
Prices fell 1.64 percent in Minneapolis–St. Paul–Bloomington between March 2022 and March 2023. Renters in Houston–The Woodlands–Sugar Land saved 1.52 percent during the same period. Rents in another Texas community, San Antonio–New Braunfels, dropped 1.26 percent year-over-year.
The takeaway
The year-over-year national median rent price fell 0.04 percent in March 2023 for the first time since the pandemic began. This decrease in rent prices follows six consecutive months of more modest, single-digit rent growth that came on the heels of a 17.11 percent increase in the national median rent price since March 2021.
