Sticker shock
These Houston suburbs see spike in apartment rents, says new report
Renters, take note: While apartment rents in Houston are falling, apartment rents in some suburbs are rising. In fact, rents have gone up in five of the 11 largest cities in the Houston metro area.
A report released December 28 by Apartment List shows Houston posted the region’s biggest decrease in rents within the past year: 3.5 percent. The median rent for a one-bedroom apartment in Houston stood at $900 a month; for a two-bedroom apartment, it was $1,070.
The picture isn’t the same in some of Houston’s suburbs, though.
In Rosenberg, rents increased 2.1 percent over a year’s time, according to Apartment List. Among the 10 Houston suburbs for which Apartment List has data, that was the fastest rent growth in the region. The median rent was $890 for a one-bedroom apartment in Rosenberg, Apartment List says, and $1,060 for a two-bedroom apartment.
Over a one-year period, rents also jumped in League City (1.9 percent), Pasadena (1.4 percent), Pearland (0.7 percent), and Tomball (0.4 percent).
Meanwhile, rents in Galveston dropped 3.5 percent over a year’s time. That was the largest decrease among the 10 suburbs. Median rent there is $890 for a one-bedroom apartment and $1,130 for a two-bedroom apartment, according to Apartment List.
Rents also declined in Sugar Land (2.3 percent), and Webster (1.3 percent), Conroe (0.6 percent). In Baytown, rents remained steady.
Elsewhere in Texas, Richardson also saw a year-over-year decrease in median rents (4.8 percent). That was the biggest drop among the Dallas-Fort Worth cities tracked by Apartment List. Median rents in Richardson were $1,230 for a one-bedroom apartment and $1,440 for a two-bedroom apartment.
By comparison, rents skyrocketed 5.1 percent in Arlington, representing the biggest one-year spike in DFW. Apartment List says median rent in Arlington was $1,010 for a one-bedroom apartment and $1,230 for a two-bedroom apartment.
In Austin, median rents took a year-over-year slide of 5.4 percent, accounting for the biggest fall-off among major Texas cities tracked by Apartment List. Rent was $1,090 for a one-bedroom apartment and $1,440 for a two-bedroom apartment. In San Antonio, median rents slipped 1 percent year over year, with a one-bedroom apartment going for $893 and a two-bedroom apartment for $1,083.