New listings of single-family rentals rose 12.1 percent in December, feeding a sufficient supply of homes into the pipeline to meet demand in the new year.
The Houston rental market’s red-hot year ended 2023 with some December cooling, as demand – driven largely by buyers discouraged over elevated mortgage interest rates – slowed.
According to the Houston Association of Realtors’ (HAR’s) December 2023 Rental Market Update, rentals of single-family homes fell 1.2 percent year-over-year with the average lease price climbing 2.4 percent to $2,207. A total of 2,986 leases were signed compared to 3,023 in December 2022.
New listings of single-family rentals rose 12.1 percent in December, feeding a sufficient supply of homes into the pipeline to meet demand in the new year. Days on Market, or the actual number of days it took to lease a home, ticked up slightly from 36 to 38 days.
“Lease properties had an incredible 2023 as they provided a critical alternative to buyers that were concerned about prices and mortgage rates but still needed housing,” said HAR Chair Thomas Mouton with Century 21 Exclusive. “While leases slowed a bit in December, we should see activity begin to pick up now that the new year is underway.”
The townhome/condominium rental market slowed in December. Leases of those properties fell 6.7 percent with 516 units leased compared to 553 last year. The average lease price rose 1.2 percent to $1,838. New listings surged 22.6 percent and Days on Market went from 41 to 46 days.
HAR’s Rental Market Update is distributed on the third Wednesday of each month, one week after the release of the monthly Home Sales Market Update. An archive of all these reports is available in the HAR Online Newsroom.
