San Diego's new apartments have been shrinking
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The average size of newly built apartments in San Diego has shrunk 14% over the past decade, according to a report by RentCafe.
Why it matters: New apartments have gotten smaller in most of the 100 U.S. cities researchers analyzed, squeezing many renters who already pay steep prices for small spaces.
By the numbers: Apartments built in San Diego between 2015 and 2024 averaged 827 square feet, per the report.
- That's 132 square feet smaller than the previous decade — the 8th largest drop among cities.
Yes, but: San Diego's newly built apartments are still larger than other West Coast cities' like Seattle, Portland, San Francisco and Los Angeles.
Driving the news: In many cities where apartments are shrinking, developers are prioritizing smaller floor plans, RentCafe found.
- A San Diego housing analyst told the Union-Tribune that's happening locally because of the high cost of labor, construction and land in California.
- Plus, the return on rent per square foot is better for studios and one-bedrooms than for two- or three-bedrooms.
The big picture: Nationally, new apartments shrank decade-over-decade but grew slightly larger in recent years — averaging 908 square feet in 2024 compared to 891 in 2022, according to the report.
- The recent uptick in U.S. apartment size coincided with a building boom that has cooled nationally but is still going strong in San Diego.
Editor's note: This chart has been updated throughout with corrected data from RentCafe.