renter's market

Houston sees biggest increase in nation among families who rent instead of own

Houston ranks first nationally when it comes to the net change in renters with children.

Photo by Tim Leviston/Getty Images

While Houston is clearly one of the most affordable cities in the country when it comes to cost of living and quality of life, there’s one place where life in the Bayou City might be coming up a bit short, according to one study: the soaring prices and shortage of entry-level, single-family homes.

The Houston metro ranks first nationally when it comes to the net change in renters with children. In the 10 years between 2006 and 2016, an increase of 107,000 households were renting instead of owning. Dallas-Fort Worth comes in second; 101,000 more families were renting rather than owning during the same time period.

Nationally, in the decade between 2006 and 2016, the drop in the number of families with children who own their home has reached almost 3.6 million, while the same demographic living in rentals has increased by 1.9 million.

Texas isn’t alone in the trend. This study, released by real estate blog Rent Café, shows that families with children who are renting apartments is on the rise in the 30 largest U.S. metros, while ownership is declining.

The issue is simple supply and demand — and there isn’t enough supply on the single-family home side to satisfy the demand. Increasing prices in single family homes have put them out of reach for many, especially those looking for a first — or entry-level — home.

In Houston, single-family home prices increased by 30 percent in the last five years, while rents have risen by 25 percent. In DFW, these changes are 45 percent vs. 31 percent, respectively. That means potential home owners find themselves apartment hunting instead.

Since 2006, 1.1 million new apartments were built nationally. In Houston, 45 percent of new apartments built over the last dozen years were classified as family-sized (two or more bedrooms); in Dallas, that percentage is 42 percent.

A number of factors have contributed to families having to reassess or put the American dream on hold. In addition to the numbers game of available housing stock at prices buyers can afford, there are also tighter lending rules, putting the kibosh on some families’ plans. Additionally, some of those renters may have been families who lost their homes in the wake of the recession and they’ve not been able to climb back on the property owning ladder. Meanwhile, single-family home prices have shot up 75 percent faster than rental rates over the last five years.

Bang for Buck

Surprising suburb unlocks biggest apartments in Houston for $1,500

Photo by Matt Halls on Unsplash

Pasadena has the 6th roomiest apartments on a budget in Texas.

Budget-conscious renters searching for the roomiest apartments in the region should look no further than Pasadena. According to a new study, the east Houston suburb has the biggest apartments on a budget in the metro.

In 2026, Pasadena residents can rent a 1,125-square-foot apartment for $1,500 per month. That's enough space for a two- or three-bedroom unit, and it's four square feet bigger than what renters could get with the same budget last year.

RentCafe's annual report analyzes the places where renters can find the largest apartment sizes across 200 of the most populous U.S. cities for a monthly budget of $1,500. The price per square foot was calculated using the average apartment rent and size per city based on "multifamily properties" containing 50 or more units.

Pasadena offers the 6th most spacious apartments in Texas for $1,500, and Houston ranks 11th statewide.

Renters in Houston proper will net a 976-square-foot apartment for the same price in 2026, a size that has shrunk by more than 20 square feet since 2023.

Apartment sizes across Texas
For the second year in a row, the Rio Grande Valley is the region that has the most spacious apartments for a $1,500 monthly budget, RentCafe found.

McAllen leads the nation with the biggest apartment size – at 1,378 square feet – which is large enough for a three- or four-bedroom unit.

"With rents averaging just $993 and the typical apartment measuring 912 square feet, McAllen renters get a lot more space for their money than most Americans do within that monthly budget," the report said. "Still, that figure is down slightly from last year’s 1,393 square feet — a sign that even the most affordable markets are starting to tighten."

Brownsville, another city on the border located an hour east of McAllen, ranks fourth statewide with apartments spanning 1,213 square feet for the same budget.

These are the top 10 Texas cities that offer the biggest apartments for $1,500 in 2026:

No. 1 – McAllen (1,378 square feet)
No. 2 – Amarillo (1,237 square feet)
No. 3 – Lubbock (1,217 square feet)
No. 4 – Brownsville (1,213 square feet)
No. 5 – El Paso (1,128 square feet)
No. 6 – Pasadena (1,125 square feet)
No. 7 – Corpus Christi (1,115 square feet)
No. 8 – Killeen (1,058 square feet)
No. 9 – San Antonio (1,023 square feet)
No. 10 – Mesquite (988 square feet)

real estate apartments housing rentcafe study houston pasadena