Suburban Rentals Beat Boston Rentals in Rent Increases
It’s no secret that luxury towers in Boston and Cambridge command high prices, but believe it or not it’s the suburban rental market that is leading the way in terms of rent growth.
In fact, it was the south and southeast markets across parts of Bristol and Plymouth county that reported the area’s largest gains in rent in December of last year—10.2% increase on a year-over-year basis according to Axiometrics.
The other two areas showing marked gains were:
- Route 128/South Shore market – 7.1% increase
- North Shore/Merrimack Valley market – 6.5% increase
The average Boston rental went for $2,187 monthly in December of last year—a $92 increase compared to December of 2014.
Vice President of Research at Axiometrics, Stephanie McCleskey, stated, “Boston apartments are performing at a higher level now than at any point in the past 4.5 years, and job growth is above the national level, so this market will remain strong.”
Rent increased 4.4% across Greater Boston in December of last year, which was the slowest increase rate we’d seen since September of the same year.
Traditionally, Boston has one of the highest rates of rental occupancy in the U.S. and there has been no indication that that will change anytime soon given that 94.5% of all apartments in Boston were currently rented in December of 2015—a mere .1% decrease compared to December of 2014.
Axiometric’s survey primarily covered rental buildings that consisted of 50 units or more.