Fifteen US cities offer rentals under $1500 amid national housing cost challenges

Despite rising rental costs nationwide, some cities continue to offer affordable housing options under $1,500 per month. Realtor.com's September rental report identifies 15 such cities where the median rent remains below this threshold. The national median rent among the 50 largest metropolitan areas is $1,743, reflecting a slight decrease from previous months.

The report indicates that every apartment category has experienced price declines. Specifically, the median rent for studios is now $1,442, one-bedroom apartments have decreased to $1,623, and two-bedroom units average $1,930. "With new rental constructions continuing to work through the pipeline, national rent has been cooling down," says Jiayi Xu, an economist at Realtor.com.

Despite these decreases, rents are still significantly higher than pre-pandemic levels by 19.6%. Xu notes that median rents are "$286 higher than in 2019," which aligns with overall consumer price increases of 22.7% over the last five years.

Xu points out that the most affordable markets are primarily in the South and Midwest regions of the United States. These areas not only offer lower rent prices but also present strong job opportunities.

Some cities on the list have seen modest increases in rental prices; Cincinnati, Oklahoma City, and St. Louis have observed rises of 1.9% or more. Nevertheless, these cities maintain median rents below $1,500 monthly.

The top 15 metropolitan areas offering rentals for less than $1,500 include:

- Oklahoma City: Median rent of $1,037 with a year-over-year increase of +1.9%.

- Columbus: Median rent of $1,217 with a +1.2% change.

- Cleveland: Median rent of $1,237 with a +0.6% change.

- Memphis: Median rent of $1,227 with a -3.5% change.

- San Antonio: Median rent of $1,268 with a -3.1% change.

- Louisville: Median rent of $1,287 with a +2.5% change.

- Indianapolis: Median rent of $1,318 with a +0.5% change.

- Detroit: Median rent of $1,328 with a -0.3% change.

- Kansas City: Median rent of $1,357 with a +0.7% change.

- St. Louis: Median rent of $1,361 with a +2.6% change.

- Cincinnati: Median rent of $1,393 with a +3.4% change.

- Houston: Median rent of $1,375 with a -3.0% change.

- Dallas: Median rent of $1,475 with a -4.0% change.

- Pittsburgh: Median rent of $1,480 with a +1.1% change.

- Las Vegas: Median rent at approximately $1,493 with a -1.1% year-over-year decline.