Rents across the United States continued their steady descent in September 2025, marking the 26th consecutive month of year-over-year declines. According to Realtor.com’s rental data, the median asking rent for 0-to-2-bedroom properties in the nation’s 50 largest metro areas was $1,703 (down 2.1% from a year earlier).
While rents are still $241 higher than before the pandemic, they remain 3.2% below the August 2022 peak. That small gap shows how the market has cooled after years of record rent growth. All unit types saw modest declines: studios averaged $1,426, one-bedrooms fell to $1,582, and two-bedrooms dropped to $1,885.
Overall, 2025 has been a gentler year for renters. Through September, median asking rents have risen just 0.4% year-to-date, presenting a far slower pace than the 1.9% gain seen by this time in 2024. The softening reflects both an increase in available rental supply and a seasonal slowdown in demand as new leases typically taper off heading into fall.
Nationwide Rental Trends
Affordability improved nationwide, too. Renters earning the typical U.S. household income spent about 23.4% of their earnings on rent, compared with 24.9% a year earlier. That shift means more renters are now under the 30% “cost-burden” threshold commonly used to gauge housing strain.
Still, some regions remain expensive. The five major metro areas of Miami, Los Angeles, New York, Boston, and San Diego had rent burdens above 30% of median income. Miami remained the least affordable, with households spending 37.1% of income on rent. Yet even there, affordability improved slightly from last year.
In contrast, Austin, Texas, took the top spot as the nation’s most affordable rental market. A typical household spent only 16.5% of income on rent (roughly half the maximum affordable level). Other affordable cities included Oklahoma City, Raleigh, Columbus, and Minneapolis.
Markets in the South and West, especially Jacksonville and San Diego, showed the biggest affordability gains thanks to robust construction of new multifamily housing. Kansas City was the only large metro where renters spent a higher portion of income than in 2024, underscoring how most of the nation’s rental markets are finally cooling after years of relentless price growth.
