Sacramento apartment rental market more expensive than New York and D.C., report says

The typical apartment in the four-county Sacramento region rented for $1,760 in May, a 14% increase over May 2020, according to new estimates from Apartment List.

Personal finance experts often advise households not to spend more than 30% of income on rent. At that level, a Sacramento household would need to earn at least $70,000 to afford the typical apartment. Almost half of Sacramento’s households don’t make that much, the latest census figures show.

Rent has risen in Sacramento as more people arrive from even more expensive areas like San Francisco.

A year ago, Sacramento was the 19th most expensive rental market in the United States. Since then it has risen to 14th, overtaking Washington, DC, New York City, Boulder, CO, Bridgeport, CT, and Seattle, WA, according to Apartment List.

The typical apartment in the New York City-Newark-Jersey City metro cost $1,737 in May, about $25 cheaper than the Sacramento metro. In the Washington-Arlington-Alexandria metro, the typical apartment cost $1,747, about $15 cheaper than the Sacramento metro.

Many metro areas that have enticed residents to move from Sacramento in recent years remain relative bargains. The median rent for an apartment in Reno was $370 cheaper in May. Phoenix was $290 cheaper. Dallas was $470 cheaper.

This story was originally published June 2, 2021 at 5:00 AM.