More property managers are offering rent concessions as the economy cools.

One third of the rental listings on the real estate web site Zillow in July offered enticements, such as free parking or free weeks of rent, the company reported Monday. A year earlier, just 25% offered incentives.

What You Need To Know

  • One third of the rental listings on the real estate web site Zillow in July offered enticements

  • A year earlier, 25% offered incentives such as free parking or free weeks of rent

  • Zillow attributed the increased incentives to a building boom that has yielded more multifamily units than at any time since 1973

  • Rent increaes slowed in July for the second month in a row

“Builders have stepped up and built an incredible number of homes in response to soaring rents during the pandemic, and renters are now seeing the benefits,” Zillow Chief Economist Skylar Olsen said in a statement.

She said a post-pandemic building boom is increasing the supply of apartments, helping to keep rental vacancies steady at 6.6%. More multifamily units were built in June than at any time since 1973.

“Rents are still growing,” she said, “But it’s a far cry from the steep rent hikes of two or three years ago, and renters will find sweeteners being offered by more than half of rentals in some places.”

In Atlanta, Austin, Salt Lake City, Nashville, Raleigh, N.C. and Charlotte, N.C., more than half of rentals on the market are offering concessions. San Jose, Baltimore, Milwaukee and Pittsburgh are the four major metropolitan areas that saw fewer concessions in July compared with a year earlier.

Rent price increases slowed in July for the second month in a row, Zillow said. Rents in multifamily units are up a historically normal 5.1% since July 2022. At the pandemic’s onset, rents increased 22.3% from 2020 through 2022.