Indianapolis Is America's Best City For Renters In 2017

[Dustin Ruhl]

A magazine has ranked Indianapolis as the most favorable city in the United States for renters in 2017. This is based on the fact that the median rent in this city is only $807 per month. This figure amounts to just seventeen per cent of the average income in Indianapolis. The only lower city found was Kansas City, at sixteen per cent. In addition, the rate of vacancies in Indianapolis is 5.6 per cent. As a result of the relatively low demand, landlords have been unable to raise rents beyond 2.5 per cent. The magazine researched forty-six cities for this report. It found that median rent was $1284.00, or 27 per cent of average income. Finance experts believe the ceiling for affordable rent is thirty per cent of income. The median vacancy rate for the forty-six cities was 3.9 per cent. The magazine noted the trend among younger people is to rent rather than to buy. Younger people are no longer buying into the assumption that a home will only appreciate in value after the housing crisis. The ownership rate in Indianapolis is 58.87 per cent, which is actually pretty high. Apartments in this city have grown by 2,000 to 3,000 units per annum over the past decade.

Key Takeaways:

• Indianapolis is the best city for people to rent in the US in 2017 because the city is very affordable, and rents are very low.
• After the recession, it makes more sense to rent than to buy a home than it did before the recession
• If you are paying too much in rent, it might make sense to move to Indianapolis

"Indianapolis tops our list of the best cities for renters this year thanks to astonishingly low average monthly rents and astonishingly high levels of affordability."

Read more: https://www.forbes.com/sites/samanthasharf/2017/03/08/indianapolis-is-the-best-city-for-renters-in-2017/

[Jay Hinrichs]

@Dustin Ruhl   I don't know that I agree with this thought process that younger folks would rather rent than own.. I simply don't see it... maybe single's  but when they get a family going they are looking for homes.

Last year I did a 27 lot detached SFR in Portlandia I sold every home before C of O I think 4 were sold to people over 50 the rest late 20's to late 30s this at the 360 to 390k price range which in our market is basically a starter home for new construction.

My higher end stuff I am doing in Charleston 400 to 700 is surprisingly going to a lot of mid 30s I sold one to Shep of Southern Charm the reality show.

Its amazing the amount of money that these younger folks have and or are making in certain areas of the country.

I think rents follow supply and wages to a degree but supply for sure.

In our market here which is the same size as Indy 2 million folks.. only 10% of the SFR housing stock is rentals the rest are apartments and we build about 5k or a little more apartment doors a year to keep up with rental demand.. vacancy less than 1% average rents have gone up 30 to 40% in the last 5 years.. However prior to that they were flat as the preverbal pancake for about a decade although vacancy remained low..

What I really like about Indy is some of the re gentrification areas that are happening south and east of just down town.. that's were you want to buy rentals in my mind.