| Boston rents declined 1 percent over the month of November, but are up 1.3 percent in comparison to the same time last year, according to a new report from Apartment List.
Median rents in Boston stand at $1,660 for a one-bedroom apartment and $2,060 for a two-bedroom as of the end of November. This is the third straight month that the city has seen rent decreases after an increase in August. Boston’s year-over-year rent growth lags the state average of 1.4 percent, as well as the national average of 2.7 percent.
Throughout the past year, rent increases have been occurring not just in the city of Boston, but across the entire metro. For example:
- Brookline has the most expensive rents in the Boston metro, with a two-bedroom median of $2,590; however, the city has also seen rents fall by 1.1 percent over the past year, the biggest drop in the metro area.
- Quincy has seen the fastest rent growth in the metro area, with a year-over-year increase of 4 percent. The median two-bedroom in that city rents for $1,840, while one-bedrooms go for $1,490.
- Haverhill has the least expensive rents in the Greater Boston area, with a two-bedroom median of $1,470; rents were up 3.4 percent over the past year but remained flat month-over-month.
As rents have increased slightly in Boston, other large cities nationwide have seen rents grow more quickly. Compared to most other large cities across the country, Boston is less affordable for renters.
Boston’s median two-bedroom rent of $2,060 is well above the national average of $1,160. Nationwide, rents have grown by 2.7 percent over the past year compared to the 1.3 percent rise in Boston.
“Renters in Boston are very satisfied with their city overall,” Andrew Woo, director of Data Science at Apartment List, said in a statement. “They gave average or above average scores in many categories, though they would like to see some changes in others.”
