PHOENIX (3TV/CBS 5) – A new report just released from Zumper indicates rent continues to increase in certain Arizona cities. In fact, the two cities with the biggest rent increases are Surprise and Glendale. Both are around 30% higher than last year. So, what is going on here?
Well, it all goes back to 15 years ago when we had the housing crisis. That’s when everyone was losing their homes to the bank because they were underwater. Zumper keeps a close eye on rental trends across the U.S. They tell 3 On Your Side that when the housing crisis began over a decade ago, construction for housing and apartment complexes came to a complete stop for years. When construction eventually started up again years later, it came at a snail’s pace. In the meantime, more and more people kept moving into Arizona and wanted to rent, causing our inventory shortage and higher rent.
Here’s another reason rent spiked. Current renters who were about to take the leap and saved up for a down payment to become first-time homebuyers threw on the brakes because home prices started to skyrocket, and they were outpriced. As a result, those folks stayed put and continued to rent even as rent increased. This means any rentals that were supposed to be available just never happened.
“Not only are they stuck in the rental market, but relative to other renters who were on the bubble of being able to buy a home, they are wealthy compared to other renters,” Jeff Andrews of Zumper said. “So, not only do you have more people in the rental market, but it’s the wealthiest renters in the rental market, so you are adding people and dollars to the rental market.
The latest numbers just released by Zumper show, on average, that a two-bedroom in Scottsdale goes for $2,440. In Surprise, it’s $2,130, and in Chandler, the average is $1,790. In Phoenix, the average rent for a 2-bedroom apartment is $1,610.
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AUTHOR: Gary Harper
SOURCE: https://www.azfamily.com/
