Photo by Roberto Nickson on Unsplash
The median rent for a one-bedroom apartment in Los Angeles declined for the fourth consecutive month in July to $2,140, according to the latest Zumper National Rent Report.
Month-over-month, prices fell by a slight 0.5 percent but compared to July 2019, rents are down four percentage points. The typical one-bedroom apartment rented for $85.60 less than the same period one year ago.
Two-bedroom rent sank 0.3 percent from June to July to a median of $2,970. On a year-over-year basis, the median asking price plummeted 6.9 percent, amounting to a difference of $204.93.
Zumper points to a “squeezing effect” on the US rental market in which historically pricey metros are becoming more affordable, while median rents in historically inexpensive metros tick up.
“This effect has continued to accelerate this month as COVID-19 persists on and more Americans are opting for cheaper places to live while working from home or away from their offices,” explains the report.
Zumper recently released neighborhood-specific rental data for Los Angeles during the month of June, identifying Santa Monica, Beverly Hills and West Hollywood as the highest-priced markets. Median rents for one-bedroom apartments totaled $2,490, $2,910 and $2,500, respectively.
That being said, median rents were down a whopping 16 percent year-over-year in Santa Monica and 9 percent in WeHo. Rental prices in Beverly Hills increased marginally by 2 percent.
Other Los Angeles County cities that recorded significant yearly price drops were Glendale (-15.7 percent), Redondo Beach (-13.9 percent) and Santa Clarita (-11 percent).
One-bedroom rents have climbed the fastest in Inglewood, rising 6.7 percent since June 2019. Oxnard also saw a price jump of 4.7 percent, while Corona and Long Beach tied for third as their rents rose by 3.2 percent year-over-year.
Looking ahead, it remains to be seen how the cessation of the federal $600 per week unemployment benefit will affect LA vacancy rates and rental prices in August.
