2025 Single-Family Rental Index
Key takeaways from a recent Cotality report.
Single-family rent prices in April 2025 increased 0.8 percent from the previous month, slightly faster than the 0.7 percent increase last year or average April change before the pandemic.
Compared to last April, rents were up 2.9 percent. Last year at this time, annual rent increases were growing at 3.1 percent before slowing at the end of 2024. Now, prices are trending back up to the pre-pandemic growth rate of 3.4 percent.
“Annual single-family rent growth mostly moved sideways in April, increasing by 2.9 percent year over year for the second consecutive month. Rents increased the most in the Northeast, Midwest, and Mid-Atlantic. They increased the least in the South, which is a similar pattern to home price growth. This could be an indication that the limited supply of for-sale homes, which is pushing up for-sale prices, is spilling over into the rental market as would-be buyers remain renters,” said Molly Boesel, Cotality senior principal economist.
Rent prices for high-end properties increased 3.5 percent year over year in April 2025, an acceleration from the year-over-year gain of 3 percent in April 2024. Low-end rent prices increased 2.5 percent year over year in April 2025, which is a drop off from the gain of 3.2 percent in April 2024.
Rent for detached rentals grew by 2.4 percent, and attached rental rates rose 2.7 percent in April 2025.
New York-Jersey City-White Plains, NY-NJ saw the highest rent growth, moving to the top of the SFRI at 5.4 percent in April 2025. It was followed closely by Chicago at 5.3 percent and Detroit at 5.1 percent. Los Angeles dropped to the fourth spot after topping the list for two months following the January 2025 wildfires. The lowest rent price growth in the nation was in Dallas where rents continued along a negative trend of -0.4 percent decline in April. The area continues to see increases in overall rental supply. Rent growth continued to stay low in Miami at 0.6 percent.
The next Cotality Single-Family Rent Index will be released July 17, featuring data for May 2025. For ongoing housing trends and data, visit the Cotality Insights blog.
—Posted on June 30, 2025
Single-family rent growth picked up for the third consecutive month in March, appearing to have bottomed out in December of last year. National trends are firming, and markets with large numbers of new rental units coming online showed softness in single-family rents, as these new units give renters some bargaining power. This can be seen in the single-family rent growth in Dallas, which showed an annual decrease of 0.5 percent in March.
Rent prices for high-end properties increased 3.5 percent year over year in March 2025, an increase from the gain of 2.9 percent year over year in March 2024. In contrast, low-end rent prices only increased 2.1 percent year over year in March 2025, which is a drop off from the gain of 2.7 percent seen in March 2024.
Rent for both detached and attached rentals grew by 2.8 percent in March 2025.
Rent growth remained high in Los Angeles following the January wildfires, topping the SFRI at 6.8 percent in March 2025. Washington, D.C. was not far behind at 6 percent. The lowest rent growth in the nation was in Dallas where it declined -0.5 percent for March. This is most likely due to an increase in available rentals. Rent growth continued to stay low in Miami at 1.5 percent.
—Posted on May 29, 2025
Single-family rent prices increased 2.9 percent year over year in February 2025. This is a slight increase from February 2024, when rent prices grew 2.8 percent year over year.
Los Angeles, California, had the highest year-over-year price increases at 7.2 percent, as thousands of residents were displaced by the devastating wildfires in Pacific Palisades and Eaton that destroyed nearly 20,000 properties. The increase was most pronounced in high-end rentals. Compared to the previous year, when high-end rentals increased an average of 2.6 percent, February saw the price of these top-tier rentals increase 9.1 percent.
The monthly growth rate for February was 1%, which was above the average of 0.2% for February from 2004-2019, marking the second consecutive month of above-trend seasonal growth.
Single-family rent growth strengthened in February, continuing a trend of higher annual gains. The monthly increases in the single-family rent index were above the seasonal trend as well, which contrasts with those recorded by the home price index. While economic uncertainty may be putting a damper on the home purchase market, it may have the opposite effect on the rental market as renters may choose to stay put.
Rent prices for high-end properties increased 3.7 percent year over year in February, a gain from the 2.9 percent growth seen at the same time last year. In contrast, low-end rent prices increased 2 percent year over year in February, a slowdown from the gain of 2.9 percent seen in February 2024.
Rent growth across property types ticked up in February 2025, with both detached and attached rentals experiencing a growth rate of 3 percent.
While Los Angeles’ 7.2 percent single-family rent growth topped the charts in February 2025, Chicago once again followed closely behind at 7.1 percent growth. Dallas continued to have the lowest growth at just 0.3 percent in February 2025, followed by Houston at 2 percent and Miami at 2.1 percent.
—Posted on April 29, 2025
Single-family rent prices increased 2.4 percent year over year in January 2025, up from the previous
month’s 2.1 percent. This is down from January 2024, when rent prices grew 2.6 percent. Prior to 2020, single-family rent growth increased in the range of 2-4 percent for nearly a decade and averaged 3.5 percent.
The monthly growth rate for January was 0.4 percent, which was above the average of 0.1 percent for January from 2004-2019, marking the first month since mid-2024 that monthly growth has been above the seasonal trend. After a period of slowing annual growth, single-family rent increases are firming up. Annual single-family rent growth in January ticked up from what may have been the cycle low point in December.
Furthermore, January’s monthly increase was above what is typically recorded in the winter
months, and it was the first above-trend monthly increase since mid-2024. This uptick signals
renewed pressure on renters, potentially exacerbating the housing affordability crisis.
Sector-specific rent growth
Rent prices for high-end properties increased 3.2 percent year over year in January, a gain from the 2.5 percent growth seen at the same time last year. In contrast, low-end rent prices increased 1.9 percent year over year in January, a slowdown from the gain of 2.8 percent seen in January 2024.
Rent growth across property types ticked up in January 2025, with detached rentals experiencing
a growth of 2.3 percent and attached rentals growing 2.6 percent.
Washington, D.C., posted the highest year-over-year increase in single-family rents in January
2025 at 6.4 percent. Chicago followed closely behind at 6 percent growth. Dallas continued to have the
lowest growth at just 0.3 percent in January 2025, followed by Miami at 1.4 percent and Atlanta at 1.5 percent.
While Washington, DC, and Chicago had the highest growth in January, the Florida markets saw the
highest growth since 2020. Single-family rent in Miami is up 52 percent, while Washington, DC grew 30 percent and Chicago grew 25 percent.
—Posted on March 31, 2025
