ATLANTA — At the start of the pandemic, the average Atlanta rent was $1,527, and within a year has grown to $1,635.
A new report found that the transformation in rent prices for metro Atlanta resulted in a 7.1% rent increase.
The report by Stessa, an investment tracking software for rental properties, ranked metro Atlanta 27th among 105 U.S cities where rents changed the most since the COVID-19 pandemic began. The U.S average for rent growth was 1.3% within the last year, according to the report.
Gainesville, Ga. ranked 15th on the list with an 8.4% rent increase. The report showed areas like Gainesville, with more affordable living costs and lower unemployment rates, ranked highest on the list.
Yet, the rent growth percentages appear small compared to the surge of home prices within the last year. The report showed home price growth skyrocketed, tripling from 3.8% in Feb. 2020 to 11.6% in April.
The study gathered relative living costs and median incomes for renters from the Bureau of Economic Analysis and the Census Bureau. The average income for Atlanta renters was $47,331.