New data from real estate analytics firm Realpage suggests the Boston rental market continues to soften amid uncertainty over demand from students living off-campus and record levels of unemployment.
Rental rates in executed leases fell by 5.8 percent on a year-over-year basis in Boston in June, Realpage reported this week. Effective asking rents are also cooling, with rent cuts of 3.2 percent seen year-over-year in the area compared to annual rent growth of 3.5 percent seen in Februrary, before COVID-19 had begun to spread in the area.
Occupancy also dropped to 95.1 percent, down 2 percentage points year-over-year, Realpage stated.
Average effective asking rents are now $2,346 per month in Boston, the company said, about $930 above the U.S. average.