Markets Where Rents Crossed the U.S. Average This Cycle

In most apartment markets where rents were either above or below the U.S. norm at the start of this real estate cycle, rents are still either above or below average. There are six markets, however, where that isn’t the case. Three of those markets were more expensive than the U.S. average in early 2010 but aren’t anymore. Slow growth and a relative lack of construction of new, pricier product over the last nine years have caused rents in Baltimore ($1,349), Philadelphia ($1,356) and Minneapolis ($1,330) to now be cheaper than the U.S. norm ($1,393). Alternatively, three markets that were bargains compared to the national norm in 2010 now aren’t. Those markets are Denver ($1,522), Sacramento ($1,459) and Portland ($1,404).