Market for Seattle Area Apartment Rentals Softening in 2014

The average rent for an apartment in the Seattle area rose to $1,214 a month in 2013. A new report suggests that rental prices will at least stabilize if not decline in 2014. Rental prices have dipped $5 and the number of vacancies is up which is a sign of the market softening. The Seattle metro area is experiencing its largest apartment building boom in the past 20 years. All of the upcoming vacant units will cause competition for tenants and slow the rent hike. Bellevue has the area’s most expensive rates for a one-bedroom apartment at $1,434 a month. Belltown, Denny Triangle and South Lake Union are the most expensive sub-markets with rates averaging $1,624 a month for a one-bedroom. The most expensive neighborhoods are Fremont/Wallingford ($1,514), Capitol Hill ($1,449) and First Hill ($1,421). Lower rents were found in North Seattle ($957). If you're searching for s Seattle Rental, contact your local real estate agent today.

How Much Has Your Rent Increased? Rental Prices: Past and Present

Do you find yourself wondering what your rental cost would have been, had you moved into your basic one bedroom apartment 3 years ago? Me too! The cost of rent in the Greater Seattle area has steadily risen over the past few years without inventory changes, although builders are starting to pick up where they left off, and apartment building construction is now on the rise all over the city. If you were to take a look at the cost of living in your neighborhood, say in 2007, how much do you think your overall cost of living would change? Well we’ve got the results! Seattle Metropolitan has compiled a list of the stats and the changes might make you resent your non waterfront view home. For instance, the average cost of rent in the Ballard neighborhood back in 2007 was $755, and today the same unit costs around $1,188. Ouch! Take a peak at your neighborhood, you might wish you could rent a time machine.