Market-Rate Apartment Dwellers Are Handling Rising Rents
Even given the unsteady economy, 95.6 percent of rent is being collected, for now.
Rising rents do not seem to be a problem for market-rate renters and paying on time.
Inflation is driving up the cost of almost everything, and rent is no exception. Rent growth, like broader inflation, is at 40-year highs.
These resilient or at least employed and well budgeted renters continue to make rent payments. RealPage reported this week that market-rate apartments paid 95.6% of rent due in May 2022, up 0.2 percentage points year-over-year.
This is considered healthy, but still slightly below the pre-COVID norm of 96% to 97%,” according to RealPage’s research blog.
Renter household incomes have risen 21.4% through May 2022 compared to a 21.7% increase in asking rents, when indexed to January 2020.
Lease renewal rates are at the highest rate on record, with approximately 57% of expiring leases being renewed in the past year.
Rent payments were the highest across most of the Sun Belt, and lowest in New York.
Autopay Rent Discount Boosts Venterra Realty
John Foresi, CEO, Venterra Realty, tells GlobeSt.com that his company believes paying rent should not be a hassle and offers a $20 rent discount to those who pay with its autopay discount program.
“This simplifies the payment process and rewards the loyal residents who choose to enroll during a time when renters need it most,” Foresi said.
Houston-based Venterra Realty operates in Texas and much of the southeast.
Rising Prices for ‘Everything’ Remains the Risk
RealPage, VP, head of economics and housing, Jay Parsons, writes in the blog that the risk is that households of all types—both renters and homeowners—are paying more for food, gas and other essentials.
“The hot real estate market has also driven up property taxes and insurance across the country, which impacts homeowners directly and renters indirectly (via increased rent to offset rising costs),” Parsons writes.
“The key is renter incomes. Wage growth has been most significant in recent years among younger workers who are more likely to live in apartments. RealPage tracks incomes among households signing new leases each month, and there’s good news: Incomes in this group are keeping pace with rents.”