RentCafe recently released its newest rental competitiveness report, which pinpoints America’s toughest markets for apartment seekers during the peak rental season. It analyzed 139 U.S. markets using five metrics: occupancy rates, the number of renters applying for an available unit, the number of days apartments stayed vacant, the percentage of renewed leases, and the share of new apartments.
Madison emerged as America’s fifth-most competitive small rental market. During the peak rental season, a staggering number of apartment hunters competed for each vacant unit in the area, while more than two-thirds of renters chose to renew their leases.
A look at Madison’s rental competitiveness during 2023 included:
- Twenty apartment-seekers applying for each vacant apartment, with rentals secured in just 22 days — two weeks faster than the national average;
- Just over a 68% rate of renter lease renewal, shrinking the pool of available rentals — especially as the metro saw a mere 0.5% increase in recently built apartments;
- An occupancy rate of 96.4%, significantly above the national average of 94%; and
- A Rental Competitivity Index score of 123, more than double the U.S. average of 60.
Despite a 0.83% increase in new apartments, vacant units became occupied faster during the moving frenzy of 2022 (18 days), with 21 renters competing for each apartment. However, a lower share of renters (67.3%) chose to stay put, pushing the occupancy rate to 96.2%.
The complete report of the hottest small and large rental markets in 2023’s peak rental season is available online.
