Rent growth slows to the lowest level in 18 months

A “Now Leasing” sign is displayed in front of an apartment complex in Washington, DC, on January 24, 2022.

Along with the rest of housing, the rental market is cooling off.

Landlords lose pricing power in the face of inflation as rents are still higher than they were a year ago

The annual increase in rents in October was the lowest in 18 months. The US's median rent was more than $2,000.

Danielle Hale, chief economist at Realtor.com, said that they are starting to see some relief from the double-digit pace of rent growth. The data shows a return to normal seasonal slowdowns and suggests that the price gains of the past several years may be behind us.

Although more tenants are struggling to afford the rent, the majority of landlords still say they will increase rents over the next year.

Rents went up by 24.5% in October of 2019. Tenants looking for more space in the new work-from- home economy led to the biggest gains in rent.

Rent growth has been in the single digits for the past three months. Rents are growing at a faster rate than they were before the beginning of the Pandemic.

More people are considering moving because of affordability. The percentage of people who said they were considering finding a cheaper place to live went up from July.

There are two types of rentals covered in the survey: multi- and single- family rentals. According to other reports, apartment rents are cooling more quickly than single- family rents.

For the past five months, single- family rent growth has been decreasing, but is still in the double-digits. In the most recent month for which the data is available, rents were up 10.2% year-over-year in September, the lowest growth rate since April of this year.

Molly Boesel said that high mortgage interest rates may be causing potential homebuyers to hit pause and remain renters. The monthly rent change was negative in September, which could be a sign of the beginning of rent price growth.

Builders and investors are feeling the pinch on rents. According to a report from the National Association of Home Builders, developer confidence in the market for multi-housing fell in the third quarter. Production andOccupancy of apartment buildings are tracked in the report.

The number of apartments under construction is at its highest level in nearly 50 years, but developers are starting to see signs of a slowing down.

The recent monetary policy of the Federal Reserve has been cited as the main reason for the decline in confidence.

According to the NAHB, there will be a decline in construction of multi-unit dwellings in the years to come.