What’s the cost to live in luxury? RENTCafé asked this question, and learned that a renter in Washington, D.C. has to pay an average of $999 more per month, of 57 percent more, to upgrade to a high-end apartment.
In comparison to other cities, Washington, D.C.’s difference between luxury and non-luxury apartment buildings isn’t so extreme. In RENTCafé’s latest report, the cost of a high-end rental is 80 to 90 percent higher for cities like Detroit, Chicago, and Milwaukee. On a national level, the average monthly rate in a luxury building is 40 percent higher than non-luxury rentals.
RENTCafé further reported that three out of four apartments constructed in the U.S. this past year were in the luxury category. While luxury rents tend to grow faster than non-luxury rents, luxury rents slowed their growth during the second quarter of 2016. In the second quarter of 2015, they rose 6.5 percent, but this past quarter saw a growth of 4.7 percent. Meanwhile, rents in middle-income housing rose by 5.8 percent in the second quarter of 2016, 0.2 percent higher than a year before.
To see the full report and data on 300 cities, go to RENTCafé here.