Rental prices for single-family rental (SFR) homes in the U.S. increased 3% in the year to April 2024, according to data core logic Data released on Tuesday. That’s down from March’s annualized growth rate of 3.4%.
The California-based real estate analytics firm reported annualized gains consistent with pricing growth recorded by the SFR segment for much of last year. But these gains were also driven entirely by standalone properties. Annual rental prices for accessory properties, including apartments, fell for the second month in a row, retreating 0.5% in April.
“Annual rent growth for single-family homes has stabilized over the past few months and is broadly in line with long-term trends,” CoreLogic chief economist Molly Boesel said in a statement. “However, single-family monthly rent growth in April was strong and high. at normal levels. At the current pace, rents are expected to increase by approximately 3% by the end of 2024.
CoreLogic notes that depreciation in the accessory rental market is driven primarily by markets in parts of Florida and other Sun Belt centers such as Austin, New Orleans and Phoenix.
“Rental supply is increasing in some markets as multifamily apartments are completed, competing with the accessory segment of the single-family rental market,” the report explains. “These trends may indicate that even after the pandemic, renting in the U.S. People also want more personal space and are willing to pay more for it if their budgets allow it. Additionally, the high cost of homeownership may lead some families to continue living in single-family rentals.
Of the 20 metro areas tracked by CoreLogic, March SFR data showed Seattle had the highest annualized rent growth at 6.3%, followed by New York City (5.3%) and Boston (5.2%).
St. Louis happens to be the least expensive of the cities tracked by CoreLogic, jumping to the top of the list with a 6.3% year-over-year increase in April. The median monthly rent in St. Louis was $1,616, while the other four rental markets in the top five for annual rent growth in April (New York, Boston, Seattle and San Francisco) all had median monthly rents above $3,200.
CoreLogic’s monthly SFR report analyzes rental properties across four pricing tiers. Low-priced properties are those priced at 75% or less than the area median rent. Low- and mid-priced properties account for 75% to 100% of the area median, followed by mid- to high-priced properties (100% to 125%) and high-priced properties (125% or more).
April data showed annual rent growth slowed in three of the four floors compared with March. The mid- to low-price segment leads with an annualized growth rate of 3.5%. During this period, growth at the lower end of the spectrum was slowest at 3.1%.
