Business
New apartment supply and rise of 'accidental landlords' help cool rent growth nationwide
Rent growth slows to 1.9% amid persistent supply glut, giving renters more leverage after years of rapid rent increasesThe year-over-year increase in the
About this update from Zillow Group, Inc.
[{"type":"text","content":"Rent growth slows to 1.9% amid persistent supply glut, giving renters more leverage after years of rapid rent increasesThe year-over-year increase in the typical U.S. asking rent eased to 1.9% in February, according to the Zillow Observed Rent Index.Nearly 40% of rental listings on Zillow offered concessions, such as free rent or waived fees, in February.While affordability is improving, a household needs to earn about $76,000 a year to afford the typical rent — nearly $20K more than before the pandemic.SEATTLE, March 19, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- The rental market is recalibrating following years of rapid growth. In February, rents nationwide were up 1.9% from a year earlier, Zillow's latest Rental Market Report shows. This is the slowest pace of annual growth since December 2020. The typical asking rent now stands at $1,895, according to the Zillow Observed Rent Index (ZORI).\n \n \n \n \n \n \n \nThe moderation is being driven by expanding supply. A boom in apartment construction has pushed vacancy rates higher and slowed multifamily rent growth to 1.4% annually, down from nearly 16% at the height of the 2022 rental frenzy.Cooling conditions in the for-sale market are also contributing to rental supply. Late last year, a near-record number of homeowners who were unable to sell chose to rent out their properties instead. These \"accidental landlords\" are adding single-family homes to the rental pool. Single-family rents rose 2.6% year over year in February, the slowest annual growth in Zillow's records dating back to 2015. For comparison, single-family rent growth averaged about 4.4% annually before the pandemic.\"Renters are gaining leverage, and that advantage is expected to continue as new supply comes online,\" said Orphe Divounguy, senior economist at Zillow®. \"An increase in both apartment buildings and single-family rentals means landlords must continue to compete more on price and incentives.\"Affordability improves, but pressures persistAs incomes have grown slightly faster than rents over the past year, affordability for new renters has modestly improved. A renter household that earns the median household income now spends 26.3% of its income on rent, down slightly from a year ago. Still, a household needs to earn about $76,000 annually to comfortably afford the typical rental, which is 35% higher than the income requir...