Realtor.com®: Two Years of Declining Rents Have Renters Ready to Make a Move

Median rents fell year over year for the 25th straight month in August as data show increased renter mobility

AUSTIN, Texas, Sept. 16, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- Rent prices fell year over year for the 25th consecutive month in August, while also registering the first month-over-month drop since March 2025, signalling the expected seasonal slowdown heading into the fall. Meanwhile, more than two years of declining rents are sparking moving plans for many renters to gain space, save money or explore a new area.

In August, asking monthly rents dipped by $38 (-2.2%) year over year. The median asking monthly rent for 0-2 bedroom units in the 50 largest metros dropped $46 (-2.6%) to $1,713, compared with the August 2022 peak, but $249 (17.0%) higher than the pre-pandemic level, according to the Realtor.com^®August Monthly Rent Report.

"Rental declines across the majority of markets in various-sized homes are providing new options for renters, who have been squeezed by significant increases since the pandemic," said Danielle Hale, chief economist at Realtor.com^®. "As rents remain significantly higher than pre-pandemic levels, our Site Visitor Survey shows that the search for a more affordable home remains one of the top reasons to move across all age groups. This is likely a reason why we're starting to see a modest uptick in renter mobility."

Rent Prices Dropping Across All Unit Sizes
Median rent declined across units in all size categories examined by Realtor.com^®. Studio rents dropped to $1,430 per month, down $25 (-1.7%) year over year; 1-bedrooms fell to $1,593, down $35 (-2.1%) year over year; and 2-bedrooms, which experienced the highest growth rate over the past six years, registered the largest declines, landing at $1,897, down $42 (-2.2%) year over year.

National Rents by Unit Size, August 2025

Greater Mobility as Rent Pressures Ease
Despite consistent year-over-year declines, median rents still remain 17.0% higher than the pre-pandemic level. To put this in perspective, this is lower than what has occurred with overall consumer prices (+26%) and with the median price-per-square foot of for-sale home listings (+51.3%) in the six years ending August 2025.

With rents easing, more renters are exploring a move. When rents rose in 2021–2022, nearly 80% of renters stayed put, with mobility around 20.8%. Census data shows renter mobility edged up in 2023 (21.5%) and continued to rise in 2024 (21.6%).

Data from the Realtor.com^® Site Visitor Survey reveals renters are most often considering a move to gain more space, find a more affordable home, or try out a new neighborhood. Markets with the largest rental price declines from their peaks, including Las Vegas (-13.6%), Atlanta (-13.6%), and Austin, Texas (-13.4%) in particular, are creating pockets of opportunity for renters looking to make a move.

Reasons for mobility vary by age, with younger and older renters more likely to move for affordability reasons, while middle-aged renters may be looking for more space to accommodate a growing family.

"Renters focused on affordability are often willing to make compromises, like choosing a longer commute, fewer amenities or fewer on-site services," said Jiayi Xu, economist at Realtor.com^®. "It shows that many households are carefully weighing costs against lifestyle, making tradeoffs to find a home that better fits their budget."

Renters Remain Hopeful About Ownership, But Barriers Persist
Even as the average age of home buyers reached an all-time high of 38 years old in 2024 and many renters remain priced out of buying, optimism about ownership is strong. Nearly 60% of renters surveyed said they plan to buy a home, and of those, more than half expect to do so within the next one to two years. At the same time, barriers such as saving for a down payment, limited affordable inventory, and credit constraints remain top reasons people continue to rent.

Methodology
Rental data as of August 2025 for studio, 1-bedroom, or 2-bedroom units advertised for rent on Realtor.com^®. Rental units include apartments as well as private rentals (condos, townhomes, single-family homes). We use rental sources that reliably report data each month within the 50 largest metropolitan areas. Realtor.com^® began publishing regular monthly rental trends reports in October 2020 with data history stretching to March 2019. With the release of its August 2025 rent report, Realtor.com^® incorporated a new and improved methodology for capturing and reporting more comprehensive rental listing trends and metrics. The new methodology is expected to yield a cleaner, more representative and more consistent measurement of rental listings and trends at both the national and local level. The methodology has been adjusted to better represent the true cost of primary housing for renters.

Site visitor survey: To better understand the sentiment and experiences of buyers, sellers, and renters currently on the market for homes, the Realtor.com^® economics team conducts a randomized survey of visitors to listing detail pages on the site, the Site Visitors Survey. Respondents are asked about the reasons they're visiting the site, how they've been engaged with the housing market, and how they feel that current market conditions are affecting their behavior. The survey was first launched in the fourth quarter of 2019, and this report focuses on results reported from Summer 2023 to Summer 2025.

Surveys are administered randomly to visitors on Realtor.com^®. For this report, we consider only respondents who indicate that they are looking for new rental homes on Realtor.com^®. Weights are calculated by computing the share of survey respondents falling into categories based on age and adjusting these proportions to match the share of all visitors to Realtor.com^® and similar online real estate marketplaces segmented by age.

About Realtor.com^®
Realtor.com^® pioneered online real estate and has been at the forefront for over 25 years, connecting buyers, sellers, and renters with trusted insights, professional guidance and powerful tools to help them find their perfect home. Recognized as the No. 1 site trusted by real estate professionals, Realtor.com^® is a valued partner, delivering consumer connections and a robust suite of marketing tools to support business growth. Realtor.com^® is operated by News Corp [Nasdaq: NWS, NWSA] [ASX: NWS, NWSLV] subsidiary Move, Inc.

Media contact: press@realtor.com

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SOURCE Realtor.com