Apartment rents hold steady in July as summer leasing season loses momentum Article originally posted on CoStar on July 29, 2026 U.S. apartment rents remained essentially flat in July, with the increase slowing from June as the summer leasing season lost momentum. The national apartment rent average increased to $1,747 from June’s revised level of $1,746, according to Apartments.com’s latest report on multifamily rent trends. A 0.1% monthly gain was originally reported in June before being revised upward to 0.2%, reflecting slightly stronger pricing earlier in the summer than previously estimated. Though apartment construction activity has slowed in most markets, a substantial, though gradually easing, inventory overhang continues to weigh on rent growth nationally. That supply dynamic has contributed to a weaker-than-normal summer leasing season, though annual rent growth has continued to increase gradually in recent months. On an annual basis, average apartment rents increased 1.0% in July, up from 0.8% in June but still slightly below the 1.1% increase recorded for the same month one year earlier. While monthly apartment rent growth has stabilized since late 2025, elevated supply levels continue to restrain rent-pricing momentum across much of the country. Regional performance remained mixed in July. The Pacific region posted the strongest monthly gain, followed by the Northeast and South. The Midwest was effectively flat, while apartment rents declined slightly in the Mountain region. On an annualized basis, the Midwest continued to lead the nation with average rent growth of 2.0%, followed by the Pacific at 1.8% and the Northeast at 1.6%. In contrast, rents declined year over year in the South by 0.4% and in the Mountain region by 1.0%. The results highlight an increasingly bifurcated market in which regions that experienced the largest supply expansions continue to face the greatest pricing pressure. Among metropolitan areas, rent growth became notably less widespread in July. Half of the top 50 apartment markets posted rent increases, while the other half recorded rent declines, a sharp shift from June when gains remained broadly distributed across most major markets. Among major U.S. multifamily markets, San Francisco led the nation in monthly rent growth with a 0.59% average increase, followed by San Jose at 0.39%, Oklahoma City at 0.28% and Norfolk, Virginia, at 0.26%. Continued rent growth across Northern California markets stands in contrast to conditions in many Sun Belt and Mountain markets, where elevated construction activity continues to weigh on rents. The largest average monthly rent declines were led by Salt Lake City at 0.28%, followed by Las Vegas at 0.25% and Tampa, Florida, at 0.21%. Several other major markets posted smaller rent decreases as seasonal leasing demand proved insufficient to offset competitive pressures from recently completed properties. On an annualized basis, San Francisco again outperformed all major U.S. markets, posting rent growth of 10.9%, followed by San Jose at 6.8%, Norfolk at 5.1% and East Bay, California, at 4.1%. Solid demand for apartments and limited new supply in Northern California have helped support some of the nation’s strongest apartment rent gains. Meanwhile, rents in markets with the largest supply additions remained under pressure. San Antonio posted the nation’s largest annual rent decline at 3.0%, followed by Denver at 2.1%, Austin, Texas, at 1.9%, Las Vegas at 1.9% and Phoenix at 1.7%. Those markets continue to face conditions in which cumulative new apartment additions have outpaced renter demand. Regionally, modest rent gains persist across much of the country, though market-level performance remains highly dependent on local supply conditions. While most markets have moved beyond peak construction activity, a sizable inventory overhang continues to weigh on rent growth nationwide, tempering what has historically been one of the stronger periods of the leasing calendar.