According to Zillow, as apartment rents continue to cool down, more property managers are providing concessions to attract new tenants. In July, 33.2% of rental listings on Zillow offered a concession nationwide, which is an increase from 25.4% in the same period last year.
In six major metro areas across the country, over half of rental listings on Zillow are offering concessions. The top cities with the highest percentage of listings offering concessions include Raleigh (53.3%), Charlotte (53.l%), Atlanta (52.2%), Salt Lake City (50-9%), Nashville (50-8%) and Austin(50-5%).
However, there are four major metros where a smaller share of listings offer concessions compared to July 2023.This indicates a more competitive rental market in these areas: San Jose (-9 .7 percentage points), Baltimore (-5 .6), Milwaukee (-1 .8) and Pittsburgh (-0 .2).
Zillow’s chief economist Skylar Olsen wrote that it remains uncertain whether slow rent growth and high concession rates will continue or if rents will actually decrease in the future.”The recent drop in mortgage rates may lead to decreased demand for rentals as more households can afford homeownership,” Olsen stated.”Additionally,a slowdown in job growth could also contribute towards lower rent prices.”
Overall,Zillow reports that one thirdof U.S.apartmentlistings currently offer some formofconcessionsto entice potential tenants.
