Detroit rents edge down, but housing still costly

• The median U.S. rent for new leases is down 1.5% from a year ago — but still about 20% above pre-pandemic levels, at $1,400 a month, per Apartment List.
• A new Harvard report finds a record share of renters are "cost-burdened," spending more than 30% of their income on housing.

Zoom in: Across Metro Detroit, rents in February were essentially flat — down just 0.1% year over year, to $1,210.

• During that timespan in the city alone, median rent fell 2.3% to $1,038.

Zoom out: Cities with median rents similar to Detroit's include Oklahoma City ($1,072), Memphis ($1,060) and Cincinnati ($1,058).

The big picture: A building boom across the South and Mountain West has cooled rents — but that relief could fade as new construction slows.

• Markets like Austin, a building hot spot where the median rent was down nearly 6%, and Phoenix, down 4%, are seeing sharper drops thanks to a surge of new apartments.
• In the Midwest, slower construction and tighter supply are keeping rents steadier.

Between the lines: What is getting built locally often isn't cheap.

• Both new and older housing developments are facing cost pressures that push rents higher, Lan Deng, a U-M professor of urban and regional planning, told the Detroit News.

• New buildings often involve higher land and labor costs, while aging buildings can require costly renovations and maintenance.
• "If the cost of development is high, that means the developer needs to take out a higher loan, which means they need to charge higher rents to pay it back," Deng told the News.

Meanwhile, more people are renting — partly because homebuying remains out of reach — keeping rents from falling much further nationwide.

What we're watching: Fewer people move in the colder months.

• Expect rents to climb as the peak summer season nears.