Sticker shock
Dallas-Fort Worth sees suburban spike in apartment rents, reports show
It’s getting pricier for people hunting for apartments in the suburbs of Dallas-Fort Worth — even pricier than for renters in the cities of Dallas and Fort Worth.
Two reports, one from Apartment List and the other from Zumper, show that this May, median rents for one-bedroom and two-bedroom apartments rose 2 percent or less in Dallas and Fort Worth compared with May 2018. However, people looking for apartments in DFW’s suburbs saw rents shoot up as much as 4.6 percent from May 2018 to May 2019.
According to Zumper’s report, Plano and Irving notched the highest rent increases in DFW during the one-year period.
From May 2018 to May 2019, the rent for a two-bedroom apartment in Plano went up 4.6 percent to $1,580, Zumper says. For a one-bedroom apartment, rent in Plano climbed 3.5 percent to $1,170 during the one-year period.
In Irving, rent for a one-bedroom apartment jumped 4.6 percent to $1,140 from May 2018 to May 2019, while rent for a two-bedroom apartment increased 1.4 percent to $1,490, Zumper says.
Apartment List tallied different numbers for Plano and Irving.
The website says that from May 2018 to May 2019, rent in Plano for one-bedroom and two-bedroom apartments inched up 2 percent, winding up at $1,160 for a one-bedroom and $1,450 for a two-bedroom.
In Irving, rent went up 1.9 percent for one-bedroom and two-bedroom apartments during the one-year period, landing at $990 and $1,230, respectively.
By comparison, rent for a one-bedroom apartment in Dallas fell 3.8 percent to $1,260 from May 2018 to May 2019, while rent for a two-bedroom apartment dropped 2.8 percent to $1,740 during the same period, according to Zumper.
By Apartment List’s count, rent in Dallas went up 1.7 percent from May 2018 to May 2019, with a one-bedroom apartment going for $900 and a two-bedroom apartment for $1,120.
Despite the rent increases throughout DFW, North Texas remains one among the country’s most affordable major metro areas for apartment dwellers. However, according to real estate services company Cushman & Wakefield, rents in DFW have skyrocketed 27.3 percent over the past five years, trailing only Los Angeles, New York City, and Washington, D.C., for growth in rental rates.
That number suggests North Texas is a prime target for the coliving concept, according to a report from Cushman & Wakefield. The report notes that a company known as Common — which rents out homes for coliving tenants — has identified DFW as an expansion market.
“Through coliving, tenants are able to pay less rent by trading private space for more and better shared communal space,” the report says. “Typically, coliving providers include additional services and perks, including fully furnished units, all utilities included, hosted community events, and even housekeeping, which in the aggregate represent as much as a 20 percent discount to living alone.”
