NC city sees a nearly 75% increase in rent prices for a one-bedroom apartment

Greensboro and Raleigh have experienced major year-over-year price increases in both one-bedroom and two-bedroom apartments, according to Rent.com’s August Rent Report.

Greensboro had the largest year-over-year rent increase in the country (out of the cities included in this report) for one-bedroom apartments, the report said.

The report has two top-10 lists for cities with the most dramatic rent increases for one-bedroom and two-bedroom units. Raleigh and Greensboro were on both of these lists, standing out as two of three cities in the country that saw large rent increases for one- and two-bedroom spots.

Other North Carolina cities — Cary, Charlotte, Durham, Fayetteville and Winston-Salem — saw rent increases for one- or two-bedroom units… sometimes for both.

For the full report, visit rent.com/research/average-rent-price-report.

One-bedroom rent increases in the Triangle

Greensboro saw the largest increase in one-bedroom rent prices year-over-year, out of all the cities listed in this report.

• Greensboro: At $1,289 on average in July 2022, Greensboro one-bedroom units are 74.2% more expensive than they were last year.

Raleigh also made the top-10 list for largest increases to one-bedroom prices year-over-year, coming in as the fifth largest increase.

• Raleigh: At $1,840 on average in July 2022, Raleigh one-bedroom units are 42.1% more expensive than they were last year.

Here’s how other listed North Carolina spots compare for one-bedrooms:

• Charlotte: $1,596 on average in July 2022. This is over 23% more expensive than last year.

• Durham: $1,539 on average in July 2022. This is over 33% more expensive than last year.

• Winston-Salem: $1,293 on average in July 2022. This is over 22% more expensive than last year.

Two-bedroom rent increases in the Triangle

Durham saw the third-largest increase in two-bedroom rent prices year-over-year, out of all the cities listed in this report.

• Durham: At $2,212 on average in July 2022, Durham two-bedroom units are 54.2% more expensive than they were last year.

Raleigh, Fayetteville and Greensboro also made the top-10 list for largest increases to two-bedroom prices year-over-year. Here’s how they ranked:

• Raleigh: At #6 on the list, Raleigh two-bedrooms are 44.8% more expensive than they were last year, costing $2,058 on average.

• Fayetteville: At #8 on the list, Fayetteville two-bedrooms are 43.2% more expensive than they were last year, costing $1,570 on average.

• Greensboro: At #9 on the list, Greensboro two-bedrooms are 43.1% more expensive than they were last year, costing $1,375 on average.

Here’s how other listed North Carolina spots compare for two-bedrooms:

• Cary: $2,056 on average in July 2022. This is over 22% more expensive than last year.

• Winston-Salem: $1,417 on average in July 2022. This is over 13% more expensive than last year.

• Charlotte: $1,687 on average in July 2022. This is actually about 1.5% less expensive than last year.

‘In Greensboro, it’s getting worse’

Josie Williams, executive director of the Greensboro Housing Coalition, says she’s seen a significant increase in homelessness and those at risk of homelessness over the past year.

“A 75% increase in rent prices isn’t only consistent with what we’re seeing… it’s getting worse,” she said. “I’ve seen rent increase from $600 to $900. I’ve seen rent increase from $550 to $1030. And we don’t have an excess supply of housing for people getting priced out of their homes to go somewhere else.”

The Greensboro Housing Coalition received money from the city of Greensboro, which received affordable housing dollars from the federal government, Williams said. The Coalition doesn’t have enough to help many community members in need of rent or utility assistance, and they’re not sure when they’ll receive any more.

“We’re in the midst of a considerable shortage of decent, safe and affordable housing. If you leave your unit to find something you can afford, you’re going to be in an unsafe area with subpar housing,” she said. “The housing market is beyond the reach of the average person.”

She’s seen many apartment complexes refuse to take subsidized housing vouchers, and minimum wage jobs don’t pay enough to cover increasing rent costs. Seniors and veterans are struggling to stretch the benefits checks they receive each month, she said.

“To make matters worse, over the past two years many landlords have increased rent prices to exploit the demand for their properties. At the same time, real estate investors have been buying up new construction homes with cash and beating out people pursuing traditional financing to purchase a home,” said Marcus Thomas, the Community Foundation of Greater Greensboro’s senior program officer.

“As a result, fewer permanent and rental properties are available in the housing market, landlord vacancy rates are low and market rental rates continue to rise with no relief in sight for many Greensborians.”

Struggling Greensborians can get in touch with the Greensboro Housing Coalition (greensborohousingcoalition.org) or the Community Foundation of Greater Greensboro (cfgg.org) to learn more about their initiatives.

Greensboro’s housing prices

The median price of listed homes in Greensboro have increased by nearly 24% since July of last year, according to Zillow data.

In July 2021, the median home listing price in Greensboro was $298,067. This July, the median home listing price was $368,464. This is a 23.6% increase.

This story was originally published August 26, 2022 10:14 AM.