Another depressing report was released this month, showing that San Francisco is the absolute worst city for renters. San Francisco beat not just its own record, but the nation's record of highest asking rent for the ninth straight month, according to a rental search company report.
The cost for a one-bedroom apartment rose $50 in just 30 days, from $3,410 in January up to $3,460 in February. Home rental search site Zumper released the report last week, blaming the "rapid influx of population and capital" for the nonstop price increases.
Tim Colen, executive director of the SF Housing Coalition, pointed out that a housing crisis is actually a good sign that things are going well economically for a city, claiming it's the flip side of having a red-hot economy.
"What are we going to do? Pray for the economy to crash?" he asked.
While traditionally expensive neighborhoods such as Russian Hill continue to top the San Francisco median price at $3,830, those hoods still experienced a dip in cost last month. Rent for other neighborhoods, including SOMA, have contributed to the overall increase in prices due to increasing development. Pacific Heights remained the same price while the Marina saw a 2.9 percent decrease in rental rates.
"A lot of new housing stock is starting to come to the market," said Zumper's Devin O'Brien. "It's drawing a younger crowd with disposable income."
The end result is that San Francisco remains the priciest city for renters, beating New York City where the median price for a one-bedroom apartment is $3,000. While prices shot up in San Francisco, rents dropped by about 4.2 percent in Boston, according to the study.
And in case you were thinking now might be a good time to ditch San Francisco for cheaper digs in Oakland, you might want to reconsider that. Oakland was deemed the fifth most expensive city to rent a one-bedroom apartment with a median price of $1,980 as of February.
In fact, the company noted that over in the East Bay rents are increasing at an alarmingly fast pace, thanks to the mass exodus of San Franciscans moving to Oakland. Colen said that in order to keep up, housing production must increase, but with less expensive production in areas away from the urban core.
"The middle-income are getting hammered in this market," Colen said. "You want to point to City Hall, but resistance to change is in San Francisco culture."
This month, the San Francisco Rent Board moved the allowed annual rent increase from 1 percent to 1.9 percent for existing centers. For the next three or four months, Zumper predicts a steady 1 to 2 percent growth in rent for apartment hunters.
"I see no reason why it won't happen again next month," O'Brien said.
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