If housing markets were people, we'd be sensing some sibling rivalry right now. The for-sale housing market and the rental market, which are normally total BFFs and do everything together, are a little out of sorts lately, with rental market upstaging its older sibling and getting straight A's, while housing market, which was teacher's pet just a couple years ago, is struggling with a C average. To wit, a "perfect storm for rent growth" has seen the city's average rent rise 9.6 percent in a year to $1,926 a month, while the median price for a house or condo dropped 5.4 percent. Economists blame San Francisco's strong job growth, combined with the lack of available apartments; the fallout in the housing market has also sent some would-be buyers into the arms of the rental market. It's not gonna last forever, though — real estate watchers expect the crappy market to eventually drag down the rental market's GPA. Nobody likes an overachiever, anyway.
· No sign of slump in S.F. rental market [SF Gate]
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