June Rental Activity Report: Kansas City Is Most In-Demand City, With Suburb Overland Park Coming in 2nd

• The top four most popular cities for renters as found in our June Rental Activity Report are in the Midwest.
• Kansas City, MO, is the most sought-after city by U.S. renters, leading our top 30 for two consecutive months.
• Runner-up Overland Park, KS, is June’s highest-ranking new entry after climbing an impressive 78 spots since last month.
• Manhattan drops from the top 30 this month, but the Bronx and Queens remain among renters’ favorites.

Renting is now the new buying as high home prices and the peak rental season bring out more renters looking for apartments. But, which cities are seeing the most listing activity and attracting the most attention from apartment hunters?

This month, the Midwest is the most popular region for renters, followed by the South. Overall, the South claims 12 entries in our June ranking — the most out of all regions. The Midwest follows with 10 spots, including the top four. Atlanta (#7) goes on as the highest-ranking city in the South for the third consecutive month.

Kansas City, MO, is June’s most desired city by renters, maintaining its top spot from last month. Neighboring Overland Park, KS, comes next, followed by Minneapolis in third place. Apartment listings in these cities saw the most engagement on RentCafe.com this month due to high rates of rental properties saved to favorites, personalized searches, scarce unit availability and overall high listing views.

Nearly half of this month’s most sought-after top 30 cities are located in the South, after six new locations in the region entered our ranking. For example, North Carolina tech hub Charlotte made it to the 20th spot, while neighboring college town Greensboro is this month’s 30th most in-demand city for renters.

Further north along the East Coast, New York City’s most affordable borough, the Bronx, jumped three more places to #14 in this month’s ranking. At the same time, Queens, NY; Philadelphia; and Chicago all fell a few positions, but are still among the nation’s most sought-after places by renters in June.

Kansas City is most in-demand city for renters in June

Below are this month’s top 10 cities for rental activity, as well as the biggest shifts in the last 30 days.

1. Kansas City, MO

Kansas City, MO, is June’s most sought-after city by renters looking for an apartment for rent on RentCafe.com, the same as last month.

Kansas City listings on RentCafe.com continue to draw attention from apartment seekers, with views of rentals doubling year-over-year. Renters also saved three times as many personalized searches and added five times as many apartments to their favorites list in June compared to one year ago.

These increased engagement rates led to a total score above 70 — eight points higher than runner-up Overland Park.

2. Overland Park, KS

KCMO’s most populous suburb, Overland Park, managed this month’s most impressive climb — 78 spots straight to #2. This accomplishment confirms the area’s popularity among renters who appreciate metro Kansas City’s balance between affordability and job opportunities.

In June, Overland Park had virtually the same number of available apartments as a year ago. However, renters viewed 27% more listings and saved 63% more personalized searches. Additionally, the number of favorited apartments in the city jumped a whopping nine times compared to last June, demonstrating renters’ determination in making a move to this Midwestern city.

3. Minneapolis

Speaking of Midwestern cities, Minneapolis gets this month’s bronze medal after rising five spots since last month. Here, the number of available apartments in the city dropped by 18% year-over-year, showing high demand for rentals. Additionally, the number of listing views increased by 54% in the same timeframe.

Plus, the number of saved personalized searches by renters doubled compared to one year prior, while renters favorited 162% more apartments in the city.

4. Cincinnati

Another Midwestern city buzzing with rental activity is Cincinnati, which held on to the fourth spot that it also occupied last month. In June, there were 4% fewer listings available in the city compared to one year ago, as rentals filled up fast. Traffic on listings pages in the city rose by 27% in that same timeframe, reflecting renters' increased interest in the area.

Apartment hunters favorited a triple number of apartments this month versus last June. This shows that they took their rental search journey beyond the prospecting stages, displaying a clear intent to rent in Cincy.

5. Albuquerque, NM

Albuquerque marks its third consecutive month among the top five most in-demand cities for renters. This time, it ranks fifth after occupying third place in April and May. Clearly, New Mexico’s largest city continues to be a renter favorite, as views of Albuquerque listings more than doubled year-over-year.

That said, what’s more impressive is that renters favorited four times as many apartments this month compared to last June, which shows their desire to make the move and sign a lease.

6. Detroit

Motor City continues to attract renters’ attention, even though it slipped to #6 on our list from #2 in May. Detroit listings attracted 58% more traffic in June compared to one year ago, while renters saved 186% more personalized searches on RentCafe.com.

Plus, apartment hunters favorited seven times more Detroit listings this month than they did a year ago, showing determination to rent in the city. Half of this month’s top 10 most sought-after cities by renters are located in the Midwest. The region claimed the four top spots as well as #6, occupied by Detroit.

7. Atlanta

Atlanta continues to attract renters’ attention as it enjoys a third consecutive month among the most in-demand top 10 cities. This Southern charmer drew in a high volume of interactions on RentCafe.com, which helped it rank high despite seeing fewer listing views and saved searches than a year ago.

Our June rental activity report shows that the number of favorited apartments by renters doubled compared to one year prior. This means that renters are more determined to move to this Georgia city that continues to offer exciting job opportunities.

8. Orlando, FL

This Florida city keeps attracting renters’ interest, continuing its three-month stay among the top 10 most in-demand cities for renters. In June, Orlando climbed one spot to #8, the highest it has ranked so far.

Views of apartment listings in Orlando increased by 8% year-over-year, while renters saved 3% more personalized searches in that same timeframe. In June, the number of apartments favorited by renters more than doubled, showing their determination to rent a place in this popular city.

9. Arlington, VA

This Washington, D.C. suburb ranks ninth in our June rental activity report after climbing two spots since last month (Arlington was also part of our top 10 most in-demand cities for renters in April). This month, views of listings in the city increased by 44% compared to one year ago. Plus, renters saved 82% more personalized searches in that same timeframe.

This shows increased interest in the area as renters appreciate its great location and easy commute to the nation’s capital, as well as nearby job clusters.

10. Raleigh, NC

Coming in at #10, Raleigh — one of North Carolina’s most vibrant cities — is up two positions compared to last month. In addition to its universities, the city’s diverse economy and investments in the tech sector are a magnet for renters.

Although the number of available apartments in Raleigh rose by a mere 7% year-over-year, listing views increased by 14%. Additionally, apartment hunters saved 13% more personalized searches compared to last June, which shows their growing interest for this Southern city buzzing with rental activity on RentCafe.com. Another clear indicator of its desirability is the number of favorited apartments by renters, which tripled compared to one year ago.

South claims most cities in top 30, but Midwest takes highest spots

The top 30 most sought-after cities by renters in our June rental activity report includes 12 cities in the South after a wave of new entries from the region. But, the Midwest dominates the top five with Kansas City, Overland Park, Minneapolis and Cincinnati occupying the first four spots.

Another Midwestern city on our list is Indianapolis, which jumped an impressive 13 spots to #13. More precisely, views of apartment listings in the city increased by 13% compared to last June. At the same time, Indianapolis rentals on RentCafe.com became more popular this month as apartment hunters saved 25% more personalized searches. However, what’s more impressive is that renters favorited seven times more properties than a year ago, showing more determination to move to a new place in the city.

To the north, Chicago dropped seven spots to #22, but nevertheless remains a sought-after place by renters. Specifically, there were 7% fewer listings available this month versus last June as the number of apartments added to renters’ favorites list nearly tripled. Madison, WI, (#23) and Columbus, OH, (#24) complete the list of Midwestern hubs in our top 30.

Meanwhile, the Bronx is the Northeast’s highest-ranking location at #14 after climbing three spots since last month. New York City’s most affordable borough saw an impressive 46% year-over-year decline in the number of apartments available for rent, reflecting high demand from renters. Traffic on listings pages for the borough rose by nearly 50%, and the number of apartments favorited by renters doubled in that same timeframe. However, Queens (the other NYC borough in our top 30) fell to #25.

Similarly, Philadelphia (the third Northeastern urban hub on our list) dropped six spots to #19, but remains a highly desirable place for renters. As a matter of fact, rentals in Philly get filled up fast, which is reflected in the 9% decrease in available listings this month versus last June. Plus, the number of personalized searches saved by renters doubled as the number of favorited listings quadrupled.

Meet the newcomers: Vibrant cities in the South infuse top 30 in June rental activity report

June’s rental activity report saw the highest number of new entries we’ve had so far: One-third of the most in-demand cities this month made the list for the first time.

Overland Park is June’s highest-ranking newcomer at #2, followed by Omaha, NE, at #11. It's worth noting here that Nebraska’s largest city climbed a whopping 32 places as listings in the city attracted 12% more views this month versus last June. And, although the number of available apartments for rent remained virtually unchanged compared to one year ago, renters saved 32% more personalized searches and favorited six times as many apartments. This shows that this city’s great balance between cost of living and job opportunities is attracting renters’ attention.

Florida’s Hialeah joins Orlando (#8) and Fort Lauderdale (#18) in our ranking at #17. Located within the hot Miami metro, Hialeah is buzzing with rental activity. In particular, high rental demand led to 26% fewer available listings this month compared to last June, while online traffic for RentCafe.com rental pages in the city increased by 12%. Additionally, renters saved 70% more personalized searches for apartments in the city compared to one year ago.

North Carolina tech hub Charlotte (#20) and college town Greensboro (#30) are also part of our top 30 most in-demand cities for renters for the first time. Charlotte climbed 12 spots as renters favorited three times as many listings this month versus last June and saved 23% more personalized searches. Similarly, Greensboro made it on our list after jumping 17 places as the number of favorited apartments tripled.

Not to be outdone, Little Rock, AR, ranks 21st after pulling off a notable climb of 56 spots. Renters are often drawn to Little Rock due to its small town vibe and big city amenities. As a result, Little Rock apartment listings on RentCafe.com attracted 46% more views compared to one year ago. Plus, apartment hunters favorited triple the properties in that same timeframe, thereby pushing the city up in our ranking.

Madison, WI; Glendale, AZ; Birmingham, AL; and Richmond, VA; round out the list of new entries in our June rental activity report.

Here's the full list of cities analyzed and their scores:

Methodology

RentCafe.com is a nationwide apartment search website that enables renters to easily find apartments and houses for rent throughout the U.S.

To compile this report, the research team analyzed RentCafe.com’s rental listing data across the 150 largest cities by population in the contiguous U.S. with a relevant listing inventory sample.

The cities were ranked based on a city-level rental activity score. Full points were awarded to the most desirable city for a particular metric, while the zero-point level was set slightly below the worst city’s value. Cities that lacked sufficient information regarding specific metrics were awarded zero points.

To calculate each city’s score, we ranked them according to four metrics and their averages as of the most current month in 2023 versus the same month in 2022.

1. Availability Rate (Max Score: 40 points)

The availability rate score was calculated by dividing the total vacant units at the city level for the most recent month by the total units and a year-over-year comparison of the same. The lowest rate received maximum points.

2. Page Views (Max Score: 30 points)

The page views score was calculated as the total number of monthly page views for the most recent month at the city level divided by the total renter population in the city and a year-over-year comparison of the same. Page views are defined as a unique user interaction on a specific page, in a 30-minute window.

3. Favorites (Max Score: 15 points)

The favorites score was calculated as the total monthly rental listings added to favorites at the city level for the most current month divided by the total renter population in the city and a year-over-year comparison of the same. A favorite is defined as a rental listing saved to favorites by a website visitor.

4. Saved Searches (Max Score: 15 points)

The saved searches score was calculated as the total number of monthly saved searches at the city level for the most current month divided by the total renter population in the city and a year-over-year comparison of the same. A saved search is defined as a filtered/personalized apartment search saved by a website visitor.

Fair use and redistribution

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