Denver Top in the Nation For Rent Increase

Between 2009 and 2021, the Denver Metro area’s rent inflation outpaced income gains by a higher margin than did rent inflation in any other major city in the U.S. during the same time span, according to a study from the Clever Real Estate Subsidiary Real Estate Witch. Denver rent prices surpassed income gains by a staggering 71% margin, putting it among seven other major metro areas where rent increases outpaced income gains by 50% or more. Denver’s rent-to-income ratio increased by 23% over the same 12-year time span.

Rent has skyrocketed in most major cities in the U.S.; Denver is just one of the cities where residents are feeling the increase the most. Other cities where rent inflation is outpacing income gains include: Seattle, Portland, San Francisco, Nashville, Austin, Salt Lake City, San Diego, and Los Angeles. From 2009 to 2021, rent increases surpassed income growth in 46 of the 50 largest metro areas in the United States. Only four U.S. cities — Providence, RI ; Buffalo, NY, Cleveland, OH, and Pittsburgh, PA — had housing costs that were in line with wage gains. 

The national median monthly rent in 2009 was $817; by 2021, the national median rent jumped 42% to $1,163. Over that span of time, the median rent in Denver increased by 82%, from $856 per month to $1,554 per month.  The only city in the U.S. that saw a bigger jump in median rent during that time span was San Jose, a hub of the Silicon Valley area. Between 2009 and 2021, the median rent in San Jose jumped nearly 85% from $1,360 to $2,511.