Wealthy renters are accumulating a larger portion of rental inventory in 35 of the 50 most populous metropolitan areas, according to a Redfin report. The trend is particularly pronounced in Raleigh, North Carolina, where 7.7% of renters are considered wealthy, up from 4.8% in 2019.
Orlando also has a growing share of its rental market occupied by wealthy renters, with 10.8% of its rental base considered wealthy, up from 8.5% in 2019. In Buffalo, 6.8% of renters fit this mold, up from 4.6%, while the share in Tampa was 9.4%, up from 7.9%, and in San Diego, those tenants made up 9.3% of the market, up from 8%.
“Many affluent Americans are choosing leases over mortgages because the cost of buying a home has jumped significantly more than the cost of renting one in recent years,” said Redfin senior economist Elijah de la Campa. “With mortgage rates near 7%, renting frees up cash for other investments that may be more lucrative than real estate.”
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