Following a volatile opening to the year, the national rental market is showing signs of slowing as asking rents had their smallest month-over-month gain since the start of the year.
According to new data out from Redfin, asking rents were up just 0.7 percent last month compared to May to an average of $2,016. Annually, asking rents were up 14.1 percent.
Asking rents rose 39 percent year-over-year in Cincinnati, the largest jump among the 50 most populous U.S. metropolitan areas. Seattle, Austin and Nashville were close behind with annual increases above 30 percent.
Just three of the 50 most populous metro areas saw rents fall in June compared to a year earlier: Milwaukee, Minneapolis and Kansas City, MO.
“Rent growth is likely slowing because landlords are seeing demand start to ease as renters get pinched by inflation. With the cost of gas, food and other products soaring, renters have less money to spend on housing,” said Redfin chief economist Daryl Fairweather. ”This slowdown in rent increases is likely to continue, however rents are still climbing at unprecedented rates in strong job markets like New York and Seattle and in areas like San Antonio and Austin that soared in popularity during the pandemic.”