Apartment developers will bring 371,000 multifamily units online this year, according to commercial real estate data firm Yardi Matrix. But as developers focus all of their attention on building apartments in the top metros and gateway cities, muted suburban supply is leading to big rent jumps being recorded in what Yardi calls “outlying suburbs.”
In many cases, strong employment gains (and a tight mortgage-lending market) are pushing younger workers toward renting. In the Lone Star state of Texas, for instance, Midland enjoys the second-lowest unemployment rate: just 3.5%. Good jobs availability spurred population growth by 25,000 since 2010, yet apartment development has not kept up. Average rent in that Texas city jumped over 18% year-over-year.
Here are the top 7 cities for apartment rent growth as of July 2017, according to Yardi Matrix.