Redfin Reports Asking Rents Ended 2024 at Lowest Level in Nearly Three Years

(Illustration courtesy of Redfin)

The median U.S. apartment asking rent fell 0.3% year over year in December to $1,594—the lowest level since March 2022—according to a new report from Redfin, Seattle.

The median asking rent was down 0.1% from a month earlier, and down 6.2% from its August 2022 record high of $1,700.

The median asking rent per square foot dropped 1.9% year over year in December to $1.78, and fell 0.1% month over month, Redfin found.

“Asking rents have been inching down because an influx of supply has left apartment owners with rising vacancies,” the report said. Apartment completions surged in the third quarter nearly 60% year over year, reaching the highest level since 1974. As a result, the vacancy rate for buildings with five or more units rose to 8%, the highest since early 2021.

“We’re kicking off 2025 in a renter’s market, with many renters finding that apartments cost less than a year ago—especially in the Sun Belt,” Redfin Senior Economist Sheharyar Bokhari said. “While asking rents declined in 2024, they may not have much further to fall this year given that apartment construction has begun to slow.”

Asking rents are falling most in the Sun Belt because the region has seen a lot of housing built, and because in some areas, rents are coming back down to earth after rising to unsustainable levels during the pandemic moving frenzy, the report said.