Houston, TX Rental Market Trends

Houston Rent Report: December 2023

Welcome to the Apartment List December 2023 Rent Report for Houston, TX. Currently, the overall median rent in the city stands at $1,217, after falling 0.8% last month. Prices are now down 0.5% year-over-year. Read on to learn more about what’s been happening in the Houston rental market and how it compares to trends throughout the broader Houston metro area and the nation as a whole.

Houston rents are down 0.8% month-over-month and down 0.5% year-over-year

The median rent in Houston fell by 0.8% over the course of November, and has now decreased by a total of 0.5% over the past 12 months. Houston’s rent growth over the past year has has outpaced the state average (-2.0%) and is similar to the national average (-1.1%).

Houston rent growth in 2023 pacing below last year

Eleven months into the year, rents in Houston have fallen 0.3%. This is a slower rate of growth compared to what the city was experiencing at this point last year: from January to November 2022 rents had increased 3.2%.

November rent growth in Houston ranked #43 among large U.S. cities

Houston rents went down 0.8% in the past month, compared to the national rate of -0.9%. Among the nation's 100 largest cities, this ranks #43. Similar monthly rent growth took place in Des Moines, IA (-0.7%) and Louisville, KY (-0.8%).

Houston is the #71 most expensive large city in the U.S., with a median rent of $1,217

Citywide, the median rent currently stands at $1,063 for a 1-bedroom apartment and $1,275 for a 2-bedroom. Across all bedroom sizes (ie, the entire rental market), the median rent is $1,217. That ranks #71 in the nation, among the country's 100 largest cities.

For comparison, the median rent across the nation as a whole is $1,149 for a 1-bedroom, $1,317 for a 2-bedroom, and $1,340 overall. The median rent in Houston is 9.2% lower than the national, and is similar to the prices you would find in Columbus, OH ($1,235) and El Paso, TX ($1,212).

Houston rents are 5.3% lower than the metro-wide median

If we expand our view to the wider Houston metro area, the median rent is $1,286 meaning that the median price in Houston proper ($1,217) is 5.3% lower than the price across the metro as a whole. Metro-wide annual rent growth stands at -0.3%, above the rate of rent growth within just the city.

The table below shows the latest rent stats for 16 cities in the Houston metro area that are included in our database. Among them, Sugar Land is currently the most expensive, with a median rent of $2,053. Baytown is the metro’s most affordable city, with a median rent of $1,098. The metro's fastest annual rent growth is occurring in Baytown (2.3%) while the slowest is in Sugar Land (-6.5%).

You can also use the map below to explore the latest rent trends in the Houston metropolitan area.