Sun Belt No Longer the Nation's Multifamily Rent Growth Leader

In the five years preceding the pandemic, investor interest in Sun Belt markets soared as regional economies and housing markets moved into recovery after the Great Recession. A rent analysis of 11 major Sun Belt markets from 2015 to 2019 showed rent growth that was 60 basis points higher than the national average. In 2021, Sun Belt rent growth in multifamily properties peaked at an annual average of 16.6%, or 550 basis points above the national mark of 11.1%, with some markets such as Tampa, Florida, and Las Vegas, Nevada, seeing apartment rent growth double the national average.