The early 2020s brought the fastest rent increases in decades. The Census Bureau's American Community Survey shows how much they added up to, measured the same way in every city of 150,000+ people.
In the typical big city, median rent rose 35% from 2019 to 2024.
Where rent rose most
| City | Median rent, 2019 | Median rent, 2024 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lehigh Acres, FL | $1,170 | $1,937 | +66% |
| Glendale, AZ | $1,057 | $1,708 | +62% |
| Grand Prairie, TX | $1,092 | $1,744 | +60% |
| Pembroke Pines, FL | $1,497 | $2,373 | +59% |
| Tampa, FL | $1,202 | $1,898 | +58% |
| Sunrise Manor, NV | $1,016 | $1,579 | +55% |
| Phoenix, AZ | $1,107 | $1,712 | +55% |
| Bakersfield, CA | $1,105 | $1,708 | +55% |
| Chattanooga, TN | $907 | $1,396 | +54% |
| St. Petersburg, FL | $1,178 | $1,805 | +53% |
| Miami, FL | $1,298 | $1,975 | +52% |
| Hialeah, FL | $1,263 | $1,913 | +51% |
Florida and the Sun Belt dominate: 11 of the top 12 are in Florida, Arizona, Texas, Nevada or Tennessee.
Where rent rose least
| City | Median rent, 2019 | Median rent, 2024 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sunnyvale, CA | $2,682 | $2,889 | +8% |
| Fremont, CA | $2,569 | $2,914 | +13% |
| Seattle, WA | $1,744 | $2,007 | +15% |
| Shreveport, LA | $830 | $964 | +16% |
| Arlington, VA | $1,993 | $2,347 | +18% |
| Bellevue, WA | $2,119 | $2,496 | +18% |
| Naperville, IL | $1,620 | $1,913 | +18% |
| Alexandria, VA | $1,781 | $2,110 | +18% |
| Wichita, KS | $833 | $989 | +19% |
| Hayward, CA | $1,958 | $2,333 | +19% |
| San Jose, CA | $2,223 | $2,674 | +20% |
| Washington, DC | $1,603 | $1,931 | +20% |
The slowest growth came in places that were already expensive (Silicon Valley, Seattle and Bellevue, Northern Virginia).
Since 2024, the story changed
These figures stop in 2024. Since then, asking rents have cooled: in the 30 cities where we track live listings, rent is falling in 25. A 5-year jump doesn't predict the next year, and the cities that rose most aren't necessarily the ones still rising.
Reading the numbers
These are median gross rents, including utilities, for all renters, including long-time tenants whose rent rose less than the market. So they understate how much asking rents for new leases jumped over the same years. The 2019 and 2024 surveys use the same method, so the comparison between them is fair.
For each city's current direction, see its rent forecast page, which adds HUD's FY2027 Fair Market Rents. For a specific ZIP code and home size, use Predictye Rent.
Sources
- U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 1-year estimates, for every US city of 150,000+ people. Medians are used only where the margin of error is within 10% of the estimate. 2019 and 2024 surveys.
Don't guess. Just Predictye.