Apartment List National Rent Report

Headline Market Update: November 2026

Year-over-year rent growth in the U.S. flipped positive in October for the first time since mid-2023, though just barely. The national median rent currently stands at $1,384, and is now 0.1% greater than it was at this time last year. The vacancy rate is also gradually tightening, as the market transitions out of the soft conditions that have prevailed in recent years. That said, our newest market indicator tracking the concession rate, continues to show signs of softness.

Key Stats

• National Median Rent: $1,384 per month as of October 2026.
• Year-Over-Year Rent Growth: Rents are up 0.1% compared to October 2025, marking the first time in over three years that year-over-year rent growth is positive.
• Month-Over-Month Rent Growth: Rents decreased 0.3% in October 2026 as the rental market enters its off-season; this marks the second consecutive monthly decline.
• Vacancy Rate: The national multifamily vacancy rate sits at 7% as of October 2026, remaining elevated compared to long-run norms, but continuing to decline after peaking earlier this year.
• Time on Market: Units are taking an average of 36 days to get leased after being listed, a bit longer than is typical for this time of year.
• Concessions Rate: 32% of multifamily properties nationally are offering concessions on new leases valued at one month of free rent or greater in October. The concessions rate remains four percentage points higher than at this time last year.

Year-over-year rent growth flips positive for first time in over three years

For years, the U.S. rental market has been experiencing a prolonged period of sluggishness, as a large wave of multifamily construction had been driving soft pricing and occupancy. However, we’re now at the tail end of that construction boom, and the market has been gradually moving toward more balanced conditions. This month’s data marks a significant milestone in that transition, as year-over-year rent growth flipped positive for the first time in over three years.

Following a period of booming rent growth in 2021 and 2022, prices began to cool rapidly, and by June 2023, the national median rent was declining on a year-over-year basis. Full year rent growth was negative for three consecutive years, with prices nationally dipping by -0.8 percent in 2023, by -0.5 percent in 2024, and by -1.2 percent in 2026. Year-over-year rent growth bottomed out at -1.6 percent in April 2026, but over the past six months it has rebounded rapidly as healthy renter demand has filled vacant units and allowed property owners and operators to regain some pricing leverage. Despite the bounceback, rents are still essentially flat compared to one year ago, and are still declining in inflation-adjusted terms. Nonetheless, it’s a significant milestone for the rental market that year-over-year rent growth has now flipped positive.

Even as year-year-over rent growth continues to rise, month-over-month rent growth remained negative in October, as the market experiences its typical off-season pricing dip. Fewer renters tend to move in the fall in winter months, and so property owners offer modest discounts to attract demand and fill vacant units at this time of year. But compared to recent years, this year’s fall cooldown has been significantly more subdued. Rents fell by just 0.3 percent in October compared to September; in October of last year, the month-over-month decline was nearly three times as sharp at -0.8 percent. In fact this month’s decline was even slightly more modest than the 2017 to 2019 average (-0.4 percent), a period when the national rental market was in a well-balanced state.

In dollar terms, the national median monthly rent now stands at $1,384, up just $1 compared to October 2025. Prices peaked in mid-2022, and have since fallen from that peak by a total of 4 percent, or $58 per month. The national median rent also recently hit a notable milestone – years of modest declines have now offset the rapid price growth that preceded it such that prices are converging back to their long run trend. After oscillating between alternating hot and cool spells throughout the 2020s, the national median rent today is roughly where it would have been if rents had continued to grow at a slow and steady pace of +2.5 percent annually, the average rent growth from 2017 to 2019. This convergence has occurred just as rent growth appears set to stabilize back to something resembling that late-2010s average.

Our new concessions rate indicator continues to show some softness

This month, in an effort to continue providing actionable, real-time data on the rental market, the Apartment List Economics Team is adding a new dataset to our suite of market indicators: concession rates. Properties that are struggling with occupancy often employ concessions as a strategy for securing new leases. Concessions can take many forms, including discounted rents, cash back offers, gift cards, or free amenities. Such concessions are not factored into our rent estimates, and so tracking them separately provides additional nuance on market conditions. Our published concession rate represents the share of properties offering any discount whose total value is equal to one free month of rent or greater.

As of October, 32 percent of all properties are offering concessions valued at one month of free rent or greater. The current concession rate is four percentage points higher than this time last year, when 28 percent of properties were offering such discounts. The concession rate has also ticked up very slightly over the past two months as we enter the off-season. The fact that nearly one-third of properties are offering concessions and that this rate remains elevated compared to last year is a reminder that even as pricing and occupancy rebound, conditions in many markets remain fairly soft and properties are still competing to lure in renters.

Concession rate data are now available alongside our existing market indicator datasets for nearly 400 locations, spanning states, counties, cities, and metropolitan areas. Full data is publicly available on our data download page.

Multifamily vacancy rate ticks down to 7%, continuing its decline

The soft market conditions that have prevailed in recent years have been driven by a historic surge in multifamily construction. The construction boom peaked in 2024, when we saw over 600 thousand new multifamily units hit the market, the most new supply in a single year since 1986. Deliveries of new apartments have slowed considerably since then, albeit while remaining fairly robust by historic standards. Despite being at the tail end of the construction boom, the market had still been struggling to absorb the swell of new inventory. That is now finally changing, as multifamily occupancy has also hit an inflection point this year in tandem with rent growth.

Our national vacancy index – which measures the average vacancy rate of stabilized properties in our marketplace (i.e. those that have completed their initial lease-up phase) – hit a peak of 7.3 percent in February, marking the highest level since we started tracking occupancy in 2017. Since then however, the vacancy rate has been slowly creeping down, and now sits at 7 percent as of October. This recent inflection comes after four-plus years during which the vacancy rate gradually loosened from record lows to record highs.

The vacancy rate remains elevated above its long-run average, but it has now moved past its peak and is slowly returning to levels more in line with balanced market conditions. That said, we expect that it will still be some time before the vacancy rate falls back to its 2017 to 2019 average of 6.4 percent.

List-to-Lease time remains elevated at 34 days

As more vacant units have come onto the market, those units have also been sitting vacant for longer. Our time on market index – also referred to as “list-to-lease” time – tells us the typical number of days between when a unit is first listed on our platform and when it is eventually leased. Units leased in October had been sitting on the market for an average of 36 days, up two days compared to last month and somewhat elevated for this time of year. Time on market is a highly seasonal metric, and is also now trending up as units sit vacant for longer stretches during the slow moving season.

This month’s reading is the longest that we’ve seen in any October going back to 2019 when our tracking begins (January’s 41 days set the overall record). Units are taking two days longer to turn over than at this time last year, and more than two weeks longer than they were in October 2021 when the market was at its hottest. Similar to the elevated concession rate, this lengthened list-to-lease time is another reminder that despite the recent inflection points in pricing and occupancy, rental market conditions remain relatively cool overall.

Sun Belt rent declines are moderating

There are 55 large metropolitan areas across the country that have a population over one million. In October, rents decreased month-over-month in 45 of these markets. At the same time, 35 of these markets, a solid majority, are now seeing rents increase year-over-year. Rent trends vary significantly by region. The decline in our national index in recent years has largely been driven by markets throughout the Sun Belt and Mountain West regions, but we are now beginning to see these regions rebound. Meanwhile, many markets in the Northeast, Midwest, and parts of the West Coast continue to see prices trend up.

San Antonio is currently logging the nation’s sharpest year-over-year rent decline among large metros, with the metro-wide median rent there down 3.8 percent in the last 12 months. Meanwhile, nearby Austin, which had consistently been seeing the biggest rent declines as it added new apartments at the fastest pace of any major housing market in the county, has now fallen to tenth on the list, as rent declines there have moderated rapidly over the course of this year. As of October, Austin rents are down just 1.2 percent year-over-year, still a clear decline, but a notable rebound from the 6.2 percent decline the metro experienced in 2025.

Austin represents a telling case study with implications for many other Sun Belt markets. After adding by far the most new units to its rental stock of any major market on a per-capita basis, pricing and occupancy in Austin are now bouncing back as construction slows and units get absorbed. A less pronounced version of this same dynamic is now playing out across the markets that were at the epicenter of the national multifamily construction boom of recent years. These markets are still seeing the nation’s biggest price declines (in addition to San Antonio and Austin, see e.g. Denver, Phoenix, Tampa, and Charlotte), but those declines are smaller than they were at the start of the year, and the tide is turning.

At the other end of the spectrum, the two Bay Area metros – San Francisco and San Jose are currently logging the nation’s fastest year-over-year rent growth at +13 percent and +9 percent, respectively, as the AI boom has created a wave of high-paying tech jobs and spurred a housing frenzy there. In the city of San Francisco itself, rents are up even more starkly, at +24 percent year-over-year. Rent growth in the Bay Area is truly staggering right now, far outpacing all other markets in the country. The remainder of the top ten is largely comprised of Midwest markets (e.g. Detroit, Chicago, Milwaukee, and Kansas City) that have been maintaining steady positive rent growth amid soft national conditions, with the region’s relative affordability propping up demand.

Conclusion

Even as the rental market enters its slow season, we are continuing to see the tide turn on the soft conditions that have defined the market for the past four years. Year-over-year rent growth is now positive for the first time in over three years. Rents dipped in October, but that seasonal price decline was modest compared not just to recent soft years, but also compared to the 2017 to 2019 average (the most recent years when the market nationally was well-balanced). Occupancy is also continuing to rebound as vacant units gradually get filled.

At the same time, an elevated concession rate and extended list-to-lease times offer reminders that multifamily conditions remain cool overall, even as they thaw. As we look ahead, weak consumer sentiment and stubborn inflation concerns could present downside risks to household formation. At the same time, the labor market has been fairly resilient, if a bit shaky. And with mortgage rates increasing again, some would-be first-time homebuyers may continue to rent longer, adding tightness to the rental market.

All-in-all, it appears that the rental market is poised for continued strengthening in pricing and occupancy. Barring any sudden shift in conditions, 2026 will be the first year since 2022 with positive full-year rent growth, and that trajectory is likely to continue into 2027.

Key Rent Stats: 100 Largest U.S. Cities

Frequently Asked Questions

What are typical rent prices in the U.S.?

The overall national median rent across all bedroom sizes is currently $1,384 as of October 2026. The median rent for 1-bedroom apartments is $1,215 and for 2-bedrooms it is $1,369.

Are rents going up or down in 2026?

As of October 2026, rents are declining month-over-month (-0.3%), but are 0.1% greater than one year ago; the market is gradually stabilizing after nearly four years of softness.

What is the current apartment vacancy rate?

The national multifamily vacancy rate is 7.0% as of October 2026, which is down from a recent peak of 7.3% in February 2026; the vacancy rate is currently declining after over four years of gradual loosening.

How long does it take for an apartment to get rented?

Nationally, it takes an average of 36 days for an apartment to get leased after it is initially listed for rent, as of October 2026.

Which cities have the most expensive rents?

Among the 100 largest cities in the U.S., the most expensive is currently San Francisco, CA, with an overall median rent of $3,843. It is followed by San Jose, CA ($3,146); Irvine, CA ($3,144); Fremont, CA ($2,980); and Arlington, VA ($2,604).

Which cities have the most affordable rents?

Among the 100 largest cities in the U.S., the most affordable is currently Toledo, OH, with an overall median rent of $895. It is followed by Cleveland, OH ($1,018); Wichita, KS ($1,025); Tucson, AZ ($1,041); and Memphis, TN ($1,063).

Where are rents growing fastest?

Among the 100 largest cities in the U.S., the fastest year-over-year rent growth is currently occurring in San Francisco, CA, where rents are up 24% over the past twelve months. It is followed by Oakland, CA (+16%); Boise, ID (+13%); Virginia Beach, VA (+8.5%); and San Jose (+7.9%).

Are there any cities where rents are falling?

Among the 100 largest cities in the U.S., 38 have seen rents fall year-over-year. The biggest decline is currently occurring in Madison, WI, where rents are down 3.7 percent over the past twelve months. It is followed by San Antonio, TX (-3.5%); Garland, TX (-3.4%); Las Vegas, NV (-3.1%); and Arlington, TX (-2.8%).

Complete Data and Methodology

The data in this report – median rents, rent growth, vacancies, and time on market – are proprietary rental market indicators built by the Apartment List Economics Team using a combination of public data and the millions of listings active on our marketplace. Complete methodologies and data download options are available on our research blog.

Median rent represents the estimated lease price across all rental properties within a market. Rents are calculated using a same-unit, repeat-transaction model that controls for composition bias and reflects transacted prices for rented units, not list prices for vacant units. Month-over-month rent growth compares estimated rent in the current month to the previous month, while year-over-year rent growth compares the current month to the same month last year. See methodology for more. See our Rent Estimate Methodology for more.

Vacancy rates are calculated as the share of units that are available for rent across all stabilized Apartment List properties in a market. A stabilized property is defined as one that has been active on our platform for at least six months and has reached 85% occupancy at least once. See our Vacancy Index Methodology for more.

Time on market or list-to-lease time is calculated as the median number of days between a unit’s listing data and its lease date. See our Time on Market Methodology for more.

Metropolitan Areas in this report are consistent with definitions from the United States Census Bureau.

Apartment List has long been committed to making our data products as accurate and transparent as possible. If you have any questions or custom data requests, you can reach us at research@apartmentlist.com.