RENT'S DUE

Rent in this Dallas-Fort Worth city increased nearly 15 percent from 2022

Zumper ranked Irving the No. 34 most expensive rental market in the United States.

Photo courtesy of Simpson Property Group

Apartment rent keeps going up in the Dallas-Fort Worth area, and none more so than in Irving, where renters pay nearly 15 percent more than they did last year, making it increasingly difficult to afford living in the city. That’s according to a new national rent report from online rental marketplace Zumper.

Irving topped the list of rent increases among DFW cities.

Despite rent increases showing a small slowdown month-over-month, overall prices are still on the high side from the previous year. For example, the average rent for a two-bedroom apartment in Irving is $1,930 now, in March of 2023, which is a half percent increase from the previous month, but a staggering 14.9 percent increase from 2022. The average rent for a one-bedroom is $1,520, which is a mere 2 percent increase month-over-month, but also a whopping 14.3 percent increase from last year.

The report looked at rental data from more than 1 million active listings in the top 100 cities in the United States to determine the rankings. Zumper ranked Irving the No. 34 most expensive rental market across the nation in February of 2023, up two places from the last report.

The report attributes these recent rental increase trends to the nation's rising inflation rate and unpredictable economy. Though unemployment is low (less than 3.4 percent), potential homebuyers are being sidelined with increasing interest rates. This is causing more competition among renters all over the country.

“Many markets continue to either normalize or correct following the steep increases in rent seen in 2021 [and 2022] in the zero interest rate [and] QE environment we went through,” said Zumper CEO Anthemos Georgiades in the report. “With interest rates expected to rise further in 2023, we anticipate continued deceleration in rent rises as new household formation freezes or is at least postponed.”

Just two places down the list from Irving is Dallas, coming in as the No. 36 most expensive rental market, which is a three-place increase from a previous report. Average rent for a one-bedroom apartment stayed relatively flat over the last month, at $1,500, yet is still 4.2 percent higher than it was last year. Two-bedroom apartments saw a smaller year-over-year increase at 4.6 percent, with the average rent price at $2,030.

Plano comes in at No. 40, Fort Worth at No. 55, and Arlington at No. 67.

Several cities in the DFW metro area also made the list, as well as Austin (No. 25), San Antonio (No. 66) and El Paso (No. 95). Most notably, Houston (No. 51) is experiencing a nearly 11 percent year-over-year rent increase for both one- and two-bedroom apartments.

The nine total Texas cities that made the list include:

No. 25 – Austin
No. 34 – Irving
No. 36 – Dallas
No. 40 – Plano
No. 51 – Houston
No. 55 – Fort Worth
No. 66 – San Antonio
No. 67 – Arlington
No. 95 – El Paso

The full data from Zumper’s National Rent Report can be found at zumper.com.

Rent Report Housing Costs rent rent prices apartments texas lists dallas fort worth apartments irving dfw apartment market

House For Sale

Dallas house for sale from the '50s is still in original condition

Courtesy

9203

There's a house for sale in East Dallas that's increasingly hard-to-find: a well-preserved home from the '50s for sale that's in nearly original condition.

The house is located at 9203 Lindaro Ln., just outside Loop 12 and walking distance to Bishop Lynch High School, in a stable neighborhood of homes build in the mid 1950s.

The listing by Bryant Nieves of Elite Real Estate Texas calls it a "beautifully preserved Mid-Century gem" with original hardwood floors in the downstairs bedrooms, a recently installed roof, a modern sprinkler system, and an upgraded AC unit.

There are multiple living spaces with a formal living & dining area, eat-in kitchen, and family room which includes an office nook with built-in desk. It has both a carport and attached 2-car garage, as well as a fully fenced yard.

Most of the homes in this neighborhood are 1,200 to 1,600 square feet, and priced from $250,000 to $350,000.

This house was built in 1957, but it differs in that it has a second-floor add-on over the garage — making it roomier at 2,202 square feet, with 5 bedrooms instead of the usual 3.

The two bathrooms are in original condition with '50s tile, both in good shape. The main bathroom has pale warm tan tile, almost flesh colored; the second bathroom, off one of the bedrooms, is a little prettier, with white tile and green-tile edging. Both are far superior to granite-look ceramic.

While both bathrooms merit admiration, this house is more about the wood. There are

original hardwood floors, all in great shape
wood doors including closet doors
wood paneling in the family room, with wood bookshelves and a build-in wood desk

There's also an odd wooden bookshelf that serves as a divider of sorts in the stacked formal living room.

The only room that looks unoriginal is the kitchen, which boasts white-washed '80s cabinets. It looks clean and functional, even if it does not match modern tastes.

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Facade of 9203 Lindaro is pleasing, thanks to the unpainted brick.

It sits on a 7,535 sqft lot and the asking price is $395,000 — a bit optimistic, even if they find the rare buyer who sees value in an untouched '50s home.

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