Effective asking rents are forecasted to grow at an average annual rate of about 2.3% nationwide in calendar 2025. Among the nation’s largest 50 apartment markets, those set to see rent growth of 3.4% or more include South region markets Richmond and West Palm Beach, Kansas City in the Midwest, Northeast markets Boston, Philadelphia and Pittsburgh and San Jose in the West. The biggest bucket of markets – 34% of the top 50 – are scheduled to see growth of around 2.6% to 3.2% in the coming year, according to data from RealPage Market Analytics. Included in this list are some of the large markets in the Midwest, which have experienced steady performances of late. Expected to rank below average rent change in 2025 are most of the nation’s Gateway markets and four of the big Texas metros. Washington, DC is included in this category, after being downgraded in the RealPage forecast due to ongoing federal job cuts which are expected to weigh on the local economy in 2025. Only three of the nation’s largest apartment markets are forecasted to see rent cuts by the end of this year, including Austin, Denver and Phoenix. These are areas that have been working to absorb big supply volumes recently, which have impacted occupancy rates.
