Renters See Relief: Average Rent Hikes Slowest in 4 Years

0:00It's April 23rd. Welcome in. This is Tampa Bay News today, where local news meets AI. Renches across the U.S. are catching a break as asking Rents hit $1,910 on average last March, according to Zillow's latest report. That's up just 1.8% from last year, the slowest climb since 2020. Local family homes average $2,225, while multi-family units sat at $1,757. Single-family rents grew 2.5% year over year, marking Zillow's slowest recorded increase ever. Multi-family rents edged up 1.3% annually, and just 0.6% from February. Overall, rent hikes are cooling off big time. Households are feeling the relief, with incomes rising faster than rents, leaving an extra $193 in pockets each month, or $2,018 a year. Ret now takes 26.5% of typical income, dipping closer to the pre-pandemic 25.8% benchmark.

1:05To comfortably cover average rent without stress, folks need about $76,400 a year in household income. The most renter-friendly spots include Austin at 18.1% of income, Salt Lake City at 18.2% Denver tying, with Minneapolis at 19.5%. On the flip side, New York tops the tough list at 38%, followed by Miami at 37.4%. Zillow points out multi-family rents have jumped 28% since the pandemic started, but that income needed to afford them only rose 1.7% last year. With trends like this holding steady, more breathing room could be ahead for renters nationwide.