Miami rents still among the highest in country. Just be glad we’re not San Francisco
Good news: Rents have dropped. Bad news: South Florida rents are still among the highest in the United States.
The Miami area ranked No. 10 out of 100 U.S. metros in the June 2020 Zumper National Rent report. Based on May 2020 data, the median rent for a one-bedroom, one-bathroom unit is $1,750 per month in the metro area, Miami-Dade, Broward and Palm Beach counties.
That’s down 2.2% from May 2019, when the median cost was $1,790. It’s also down from April, when the price was $1,770.
Metro rankings are by price. When wages are factored in, Miami-Dade often ranks as the most expensive county in the nation for renters.
“With great city amenities, like beaches, nightlife, and even university opportunities, coupled with the fact that it’s still significantly cheaper, over $1,000 a month less expensive, than the priciest markets like San Francisco and New York, the demand for living in Miami will always remain high,” said Crystal Chen by email.
Chen is a data analyst at Zumper, a rental search site.
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According to the Zumper survey, the most expensive metro in the nation was San Francisco, where a one-bedroom, one-bath apartment costs $3,360. It was followed by New York ($2,950), Boston ($2,450), San Jose ($2,420), Oakland ($2,350), D.C. ($2,220), Los Angeles ($2,170), Seattle ($1,800) and San Diego ($1,770).
Miami isn’t the only city where rents dropped. In San Francisco, prices dropped 9.2% from May 2019, and 2.6% from April 2020. In New York, rents remained flat month-to-month but dipped slightly — by 1% — from May 2019.
“It seems the pandemic has shifted the demand for apartments away from the most expensive cities, since usually demand picks up as we head into summer but now the opposite is true,” Chen said. “As more and more companies move into remote work, many renters don’t want to pay the big city price tag when they are unable to use the amenities and are looking for more affordable options outside of large, metropolitan areas.
“Rents in historically pricey cities like Miami,” she said, “will continue to face downward pressure in the coming months as landlords will need to price their units down to fill vacancies or offer incentives like a free month’s rent with a 12-month lease.”
This story was originally published June 3, 2020 at 7:00 AM.
