Single-Family Rent Prices Sprint Upward in November

CoreLogic, Irvine, Calif., said single-family rent growth reached 11.5 percent year-over-year in November, continuing its dramatic climb.

For comparison, SFR rent prices were increasing at a 3.8 percent in November 2020.

“Improvements in the economy and job market have helped push single-family rent growth to record levels,” said Molly Boesel, Principal Economist at CoreLogic.

But Boesel noted rapid increases in single-family rents have eroded affordability, especially for lower-priced properties.

CoreLogic examined four rent price tiers. It found properties with rents priced at 75 percent or less of the regional median saw 10.4 percent rent growth year-over-year, up from up from a 3.1 percent rate in November 2020. Properties with rents between 75 percent and 100 percent of the regional median saw 11.3 percent growth while higher-middle priced properties with rents between 100 percent and 125 percent of the median saw 12 percent rent growth.

The highest-priced properties, those priced at 125 percent of the regional median or above, saw 11.7 percent year-over-year rent growth, up from 4 percent in November 2020, CoreLogic said.

Annual rent price growth has continued to double and even triple in the last several months, the report said. “This rapid acceleration in rent growth has added to the heightened concerns around inflation for both consumers and federal and local governments,” CoreLogic said. “The impact will likely continue to put upward pressure on inflation over the coming year as rent growth is fully reflected in the inflation measure.”

Among the 20 largest U.S. metros, Miami had the highest year-over-year increase in single-family rents in November 2021 at 33 percent, followed by Phoenix and Las Vegas at 19.4 percent and 16.7 percent, respectively. These major metros have continued to experience rapid growth year over year and month over month as unemployment continues to drop and traveling tourism returns. Meanwhile, Washington, D.C. logged the lowest annual rent price growth at 5.4 percent in November.

CoreLogic also examined single-family rent growth by property type. “Differences in rent growth by property type emerged after the pandemic as renters sought out standalone properties in lower-density areas,” the report said. “Notably, rent growth has slowed in the recent month for detached single-family rentals and strengthened for attached single-family rentals.”

The single-family rental market accounts for half of the nation’s rental housing stock.