The national median asking monthly rent across the nation’s 50 largest metro areas in April was $1,673, down $29 or 1.7%, year-over-year. This marked the 33rd consecutive month of annual declines for 0-2 bedroom properties.
According to data from Realtor.com, the national median remains $254 (17.9%) above pre-pandemic levels recorded in April 2019 and is down by $92 (-5.2%) from its August 2022 peak. The multifamily construction pipeline is 11.4% above pre-pandemic norms, with a 20% year-over-year increase in first quarter multifamily property groundbreakings adding to the downward pressure on rents.
However, the regional picture is uneven. The Northeast saw new multifamily groundbreakings nearly double year-over-year in the first quarter, but new groundbreakings in the West fell to their lowest first-quarter level since at least 2017.
Looking ahead, rental stock growth is expected to be strongest in the Northeast (+1.1%) by the first quarter of 2027, followed by the South (+0.9%), and the Midwest and West (both +0.7%).
“The story isn’t the same in every region, and that matters for where renters will feel relief next,” said Jiayi Xu, economist at Realtor.com. “The Northeast is already seeing new multifamily units come online and rents respond in some large markets. The West is telling a very different story. Renters there who are benefiting from lower rents today may find that window closing as fewer new multifamily units enter the market. As we move into the spring and summer leasing seasons, we expect the median asking rent to tick up modestly on a monthly basis, which is the typical seasonal pattern. But given the sustained level of multifamily construction relative to pre-pandemic norms, year-over-year declines are likely to continue through 2026. Modest rent relief is still the story for most renters.”
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