renting in the big city

DFW nearly tops list of cities building most new homes for rent

Dallas is building more single-family rental homes than nearly every other U.S. city.

A new rental report has revealed Texas is leading the nation with the highest single-family home rental construction growth, and Dallas-Fort Worth nearly topped the list of metros building the most new homes for rent.

The analysis from rental listings website Point2Homes examined construction rates and building permit data for single-family homes that are "located in build-to-rent, professionally managed communities" across America. For the purpose of the study, build-to-rent homes are defined as units that don't share any walls with other homes, and includes those that have shared walls but do not have neighbors above or below or have a direct-access garage.

According to the report's findings, Dallas' rental home construction rate is the 5th highest in the nation, and the metro area is expected to build 8,470 new single-family homes for rent in 2025.

The greatest share of rental homes – 1,816 units – are being built in neighboring Fort Worth, while Dallas proper is only expecting to build 64 new rental homes.

This is how many build-to-rent homes are being built across other DFW-area cities:

1,293 units – McKinney
876 units – Denton
696 units – Melissa
635 units – Anna
543 units – Garland
537 units – Celina
408 units – Princeton
251 units – Lavon
204 units – Ferris
200 units – Weatherford
176 units – Crandall
168 units – Crowley
166 units – Saginaw
134 units – Aubrey
96 units – Forney
85 units – Addison
65 units – Arlington
57 units – Red Oak

The report says Fort Worth will become the new hometown for one of the largest single-family rental communities, Living Fully Orchard Farms, which will develop 643 new construction homes. But Dallas-area rental communities aren't far behind.

"The second and third largest communities currently under construction in the Dallas metro are in Princeton and Melissa: Oxenfree at Princeton and Wolf Creek Farms will add 408 and 343 units, respectively," the report said.

Build-to-rent growth rates in Texas
Dallas' rental home construction helps make up the total 21,812 units that are planned or currently being built in Texas this year.

The report claims Texas' healthy job market, remote work flexibility, and its business-friendliness are the top reasons why the build-to-rent growth has soared so high.

Doug Ressler, senior analyst and manager of business intelligence at Yardi Matrix (Point2Homes' sister company), says affordability is another major factor.

"The biggest hurdle to buying a home for [build-to-rent] BTR residents is high mortgage rates, so BTR homes provide an affordability solution in today’s increasingly expensive housing market," Ressler says. "On average, renting a BTR unit is cheaper than buying a starter home. Recent reports indicate that renting can save one around $1,000 per month compared to buying. This is largely due to high mortgage rates and elevated home prices."

Ressler adds that the target markets – Millennials and Gen Z – are increasingly interested in new single-family home rentals to avoid the hurdle of paying high property taxes while still managing other debts like student loans. This also allows them to remain close to the city in a nearby suburb, rather than in rural areas.

"As urban areas become more congested and expensive, there’s a growing trend towards suburban living," Ressler said. "BTR properties in suburban areas offer more space and affordability while maintaining connectivity to urban centers."

Other Texas metros
Texas cities dominated the top 10 U.S. metros with the greatest build-to-rent growth rates. Houston ranked No. 5 nationally with 4,613 new homes being built for rent in the metro.

Meanwhile, Austin and San Antonio ranked No. 6 and No. 8 respectively. Austin currently has 4,313 new single-family rental homes in the pipeline in 2025, while San Antonio is expected to build 2,994 units.

Phoenix, Arizona topped the nation with the No. 1 highest new rental home construction rate. The Valley of the Sun is expected to complete 13,113 build-to-rent homes in 2025.

The top 10 U.S. metros building the most new rental homes in 2025 are:

No. 1 – Phoenix, Arizona
No. 2 – Dallas-Fort Worth, Texas
No. 3 – Atlanta, Georgia
No. 4 – Charlotte, North Carolina
No. 5 – Houston, Texas
No. 6 – Austin, Texas
No. 7 – Orlando, Florida
No. 8 – San Antonio, Texas
No. 9 – Raleigh, North Carolina
No. 10 – Huntsville, Alabama

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rent report

2 Dallas suburbs have the highest rents in DFW right now, report finds

Photo courtesy of Simpson Property Group

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After American shoppers spent $11.5 billion on Black Friday this year, it's safe to say many people are watching their wallets this holiday season, including renters. And a new report is shedding light on the North Texas cities that are shelling out the most for their rent.

Zumper's newest monthly rent report, released December 2, analyzed active listings from the previous month across all cities in the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex. It tracked the most and least expensive rent prices for one- and two-bedroom apartments, and determines the cities with the fastest growing rents. Listings were aggregated by city to calculate median asking rents.

Frisco and The Colony tied for having the highest rent prices in Dallas-Fort Worth in November. According to the study's findings, the median rent price for a single-bedroom apartment came out to $1,620 last month in both cities. In Frisco, that's $10 lower than what it cost for the same apartment in June.

Frisco residents are expected to budget $3,491 for their holiday presents this year, WalletHub says, which means they might be watching their spending a lot more than other North Texas residents.

For two-bedroom units, median rent prices in Frisco rose 3.3 percent from October to $2,200. A two-bedroom apartment in The Colony rose 0.9 percent month-over-month to $2,130.

Grapevine's median rent prices were the third-priciest out of all cities in Dallas-Fort Worth. Zumper found that the median price for a one-bedroom apartment came out to $1,470, and two-bedroom units cost $1,840 in November.

Dallas tied with Plano for the fourth-highest rents in the metro area, the report said. Single-bedroom units cost the same amount between both cities ($1,470) while two-bedroom units were more expensive in Dallas ($2,060) than in Plano ($2,030).

For comparison, the price of one bedroom unit in Dallas was $30 cheaper in October, while two bedroom units cost $20 less than November's asking price. In September, asking rent for single-bedroom apartments added up to $1,480, while two bedroom units cost $2,100 per month.

These are the median rent prices for one- and two-bedroom apartments across Dallas-Fort Worth:

Richardson – $1,420 for one-bedroom units; $1,750 for two-bedroom units
McKinney – $1,400 for one-bedroom units; $1,850 for two-bedroom units
Carrollton – $1,360 for one-bedroom units; $1,730 for two-bedroom units
Lewisville – $1,300 for one-bedroom units; $1,700 for two-bedroom units
Burleson – $1,250 for one-bedroom units; $1,620 for two-bedroom units
Weatherford – $1,240 for one-bedroom units; $1,370 for two-bedroom units
Irving – $1,220 for one-bedroom units; $1,650 for two-bedroom units
Fort Worth – $1,190 for one-bedroom units; $1,450 for two-bedroom units
Grand Prairie – $1,170 for one-bedroom units; $1,560 for two-bedroom units
North Richland Hills – $1,160 for one-bedroom units; $1,460 for two-bedroom units
Haltom City – $1,150 for one-bedroom units; $1,430 for two-bedroom units

DFW cities with affordable rent compared to the statewide median
Zumper found the statewide median rent for a one bedroom apartment came out to $1,126 last month.

Cleburne had the most affordable rent for a one-bedroom unit in all of Dallas-Fort Worth, with median prices adding up to an even $1,000. The report also found that Cleburne's single-bedroom rent costs are 10.7 percent lower than they were a year ago. The median cost for a two-bedroom unit in Cleburne ($1,190) is 8.5 percent lower than it was in November 2024.

Six more Dallas-Fort Worth cities had more affordable single-bedroom rent prices than the statewide median: Bedford ($1,110), Mesquite ($1,110), Hurst ($1,100), Denton ($1,090), Arlington ($1,080), and Benbrook ($1,020).

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