According to a study conducted by RentCafe in 2016, 75% of all new apartment completions in 2015 were considered luxury or high-end. No non-luxury rental apartment units were completed in 14 of the 30 largest U.S. cities over the course of that entire year, including San Antonio, San Jose, Calif., Milwaukee, Wis., and Kansas City, Mo.
As of 2018, the national average rent in a high-end building is around $1,640 per month, according to RENTCafe. That's about $490 higher than an average apartment in a low-end building. However, rents can vary by thousands of dollars between cities.
According to Yardi Matrix data, a luxury studio apartment in San Francisco may cost as much to rent each month as a luxury 3-bedroom apartment in San Diego. At the same time, a luxury studio apartment rents for under $1,200 per month in 12 of the 30 largest cities, while a two-bedroom apartment in the same building rents for $1,500 or lower per month in 11 of the 30 largest cities. This data is based only on market-rate properties with 50 or more units; fully-affordable properties are not included.
El Paso, Texas has the lowest average rent for a high-end apartment at $972. Its average prices range from $852 for a one-bedroom apartment to $1,194 for a three-bedroom apartment. It also has experienced the greatest recorded decline in high-end rents in this analysis, with a -1.3% change in high-end rents over the last three years. On average, high-end rents in El Paso are $291 higher than low-end rents.
The lowest average rent for a studio apartment is $832 in Louisville, K.Y. Other markets where high-end studios rent for under $1,000 include Oklahoma City, O.K.; Las Vegas; Phoenix; Memphis, Tenn.; and Columbus, Ohio.
Manhattan has the highest average rent for a high-end apartment at $4,416. (Manhattan and Brooklyn are listed separately.) It also has the highest average rent for a high-end studio apartment at $3,179 and the highest three-bedroom apartment rent at $8,163. On average, high-end rents in Manhattan are $1,035 higher than low-end rents.
San Francisco, Calif., is the only other city where the average high-end rent is over $4,000 at $4,132 or the average high-end studio rent is over $3,000 at $3,157.
A full list of cities and prices by apartment size is available at RentCafe Blog.
