A report released today by Zillow shows that median rents rose 6.1 percent in St Louis to $1,085 from January 2011 to January 2012 while, during the same period, home prices fell 6.9 percent to $120,300. According to the report, over two-thirds (69.2 percent) of the metro areas covered saw year-over-year gains in rents but only 7.3 percent of the metros saw home values rise during the same period.
In some large markets, rents rose almost as much as home prices fell. For example, in Chicago, rents rose 9.1 percent year-over-year, while home prices fell 10.4 percent during the same period. In the Minneapolis-St. Paul metro, rents rose 11 percent and home prices fell 8.1 percent.
“The flourishing rental market is the silver lining to the nation’s housing downturn,” said Zillow Chief Economist Dr. Stan Humphries. “While it seems that rents are rising at the expense of home values, the opposite is true. A thriving rental market will stimulate home sales as investors snap up low-priced inventory to convert to rentals. That, in turn, will lower the number of homes on the market, which will eventually help put a floor under the value of all homes. Moreover, rising rents increase demand as buying becomes more attractive than renting because of low purchase prices and higher rents.”
In the short term, national monthly rents declined slightly from December 2011 to January 2012, falling 0.3 percent to $1,218. Home values fell 0.5 percent during the same period to $146,200.
| Metropolitan Areas | Zillow Home Value Index | Zillow Rent Index | ||||
| January 2012 | YoY Change | January 2012 | YoY Change | |||
| United States | $146,200 | -4.6% | $1,218 | 3.0% | ||
| New York | $334,400 | -5.5% | $1,850 | — | ||
| Los Angeles | $383,200 | -6.2% | $2,232 | 4.6% | ||
| Chicago | $157,200 | -10.4% | $1,453 | 9.1% | ||
| Dallas | $121,100 | -2.7% | $1,261 | 1.0% | ||
| Philadelphia | $184,200 | -6.1% | $1,464 | 12.1% | ||
| Washington | $302,400 | -1.0% | $1,992 | 7.9% | ||
| Miami-Fort Lauderdale, Fla. | $138,100 | -2.2% | $1,579 | 6.0% | ||
| Atlanta | $108,900 | -11.3% | $1,114 | 0.5% | ||
| Boston | $302,800 | -3.0% | $1,834 | 1.9% | ||
| San Francisco | $463,800 | -5.2% | $2,392 | 5.4% | ||
| Detroit | $72,400 | -5.1% | $987 | 5.1% | ||
| Riverside, Calif. | $178,200 | -5.1% | $1,534 | 1.2% | ||
| Phoenix | $124,300 | -3.1% | $1,128 | 1.9% | ||
| Seattle | $249,700 | -7.8% | $1,576 | 5.1% | ||
| Minneapolis-St. Paul, Minn. | $162,800 | -8.1% | $1,378 | 11.0% | ||
| San Diego | $335,600 | -5.1% | $2,083 | 2.9% | ||
| Tampa, Fla. | $103,400 | -7.8% | $1,153 | 3.0% | ||
| St. Louis | $120,300 | -6.9% | $1,085 | 6.1% | ||
| Baltimore | $213,300 | -3.3% | $1,596 | 8.0% | ||
| Denver | $203,900 | -1.9% | $1,420 | 5.9% | ||
| Pittsburgh | $105,800 | -0.2% | $971 | 0.3% | ||
| Portland, Ore. | $206,100 | -6.0% | $1,322 | 7.5% | ||
| Sacramento, Calif. | $201,500 | -8.6% | $1,407 | 0.4% | ||
| Orlando, Fla. | $113,800 | -5.6% | $1,185 | 3.9% | ||
| Cleveland | $107,200 | -5.3% | $1,070 | 3.9% | ||
Leave a Reply
You must be logged in to post a comment.