U.S. rents for October see slowest growth in 14 months on economic uncertainty, inflation

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October rents in the U.S. saw the smallest annual increase since August 2021 as economic uncertainty continued to keep renters sidelined and persistently high inflation ate into their budgets, according to a Wednesday report by Redfin.

The median asking rent increased 7.8% Y/Y and dipped 0.9% M/M to $1,983.

The report highlighted that October marked the second straight month of single-digit rent growth after around a year of double-digit gains.

“Demand for rentals is slowing because economic uncertainty is prompting many renters to stay put, and persistent inflation is shrinking renter budgets," said Redfin Deputy Chief Economist Taylor Marr. “There are signs that inflation is starting to ease, but it will likely be a while before renters see meaningful relief given that rents are still up more than wages.”

Milwaukee, Wisconsin saw the biggest annual drop in asking rents during the month among major U.S. metro areas, falling 17.6% Y/Y, followed by Minneapolis, Minnesota (-7.8%), Baltimore, Maryland (-3.2%) and Seattle, Washington (-2.7%).

On the flip side, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma rents experienced a Y/Y jump of 31.7%, the biggest rise among the 50 most populated metros, the report showed. That was followed by Raleigh, North Carolina (+21%), Cincinnati, Ohio (+21.0%) and Louisville, Kentucky (+15.8%).

Apartment REITs: Equity Residential (EQR), Independence Realty (IRT), AvalonBay Communities (AVB), Camden Property (CPT), Apartment Income (AIRC), Veris Residential (VRE).

Elsewhere, mortgage demand rose by 2.7% as rates saw largest single-week decline since July.