Since March 2020, the estimated median rent of new leases has increased by double digits in several Texas cities.
After divorcing last spring, Lindsey Warren rented a three-bedroom, two-bathroom house for herself, her three children and their dogs.
She said renting was her only option because she has a low credit score. The costs “shocked” her.
She spent $4,500 to move in and is paying $1,868 a month for rent, insurance and pet fees.
As high inflation pushes up other living costs, Warren said she is struggling to keep up. She works for FedEx and supports her children on her income alone.
“It has been miserably hard,” she said.
Rising rents are making it hard for residents across the San Antonio metropolitan area to find affordable apartments — and rates continued to climb in July, according to the latest data.
Real estate brokerage Redfin pegged the median asking rent in San Antonio at $1,476 last month, up 21.1 percent from a year ago.
That increase landed San Antonio in 10th place among metros with the fastest-rising rents year-over-year last month. Redfin ranked Cincinnati first with an increase of 31 percent; Nashville second at 26 percent; and Pittsburgh third at 24 percent.
Realtor.com’s estimate for median July rent in San Antonio was lower at $1,418, up 13.4 percent from a year ago.
Warren said she stopped taking lunch to work so her children will have enough food, has maxed out her credit cards and is missing payments.
She lost her car in the divorce, so she borrows her boyfriend’s or friends’ cars to get around.
“I just asked my dad today to borrow money. I’m almost 40 — I haven’t asked my dad for money in years,” she said.
In other large Texas metros, rents last month were higher than in San Antonio.
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The median asking rent was $2,491 in Austin, $1,737 in Houston and $2,218 in Dallas, according to Redfin. Realtor.com reported median rent of $1,853 in Austin, $1,450 in Houston and $1,703 in Dallas.
Redfin said year-over-year rent spikes in each of those metros outpaced San Antonio; Realtor.com said increases were higher in Dallas and Austin, but lower in Houston.
Across the United States, prices hit another record in July but the rental market is showing signs of cooling.
The median asking rent nationwide was $2,032 last month, a 14 percent increase year-over-year and the smallest annual bump since November, according to Redfin.
“Big rent hikes may finally be coming to an end as landlords adjust to waning tenant budgets that are being strained by the rising cost of groceries, gas and other regular expenses,” Redfin chief economist Daryl Fairweather said in a statement.
”Still, rents are increasing faster than overall inflation, which has started to ease,” she added. “We expect rental growth to continue to slow, but markets with strong job growth and limited new housing construction, like New York and Seattle, will likely continue to experience large rent increases.”
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Surging demand and limited supply of available apartments have pushed up rent prices.
Realtor.com said the median listed rent across the 50 largest U.S. metro areas was $1,879 in July, up 12.3 percent year-over year. That was the lowest annual rate since August 2021 and a mere $3 more than June 2022.
“This sets yet another new high for national rent, breaking the record for the 17th month in a row, but it also signals a significant slowdown in rent growth,” Realtor.com noted.
“Despite the encouraging indicators, the challenges of record-high rent, 12.3 percent higher than last year, amid 8.5 percent inflation and just 5.2 percent wage growth are very real to renters,” its report continued. “Relief in the form of moderating rent charges is coming, but it has not arrived yet.”
Surging demand and limited supply of available apartments have pushed up rent prices.
As more companies began offering remote work options during the coronavirus pandemic, employees relocated to less expensive cities or sought more space.
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Increasing home prices and higher interest rates than earlier in the pandemic have priced many would-be buyers out of the market, so they have continued renting, keeping units occupied that would otherwise be available.
The median sale price of a San Antonio home in July was $341,600, an increase of 15.4 percent from a year earlier, according to the San Antonio Board of Realtors.
Rising construction and labor costs, supply chain delays and higher interest rates have also made it more expensive to build and fix up apartments. Owners are passing those costs to renters.
Sixty percent of respondents in a July survey told Realtor.com’s Avail that rising housing costs are squeezing their wallets and 57 percent said their rent increased since they moved in to their current home.
For its figures, Redfin said it evaluated rent prices from RentPath in the 50 largest U.S. metros and used data from more than 20,000 apartment buildings. Its estimates refer to the median cost of apartments available for rent in July.
Realtor.com used data for units listed for rent on its website.
madison.iszler@express-news.net
Madison Iszler covers real estate, retail, economic development, and other business topics for the San Antonio Express-News.
Reach Madison at 210-250-3242, madison.iszler@express-news.net and @madisoniszler.