San Diego Rent Report: July 2023

Currently, the overall median rent in the city stands at $2,447, after rising 0.6% last month. Prices remain down 0.1% year-over-year. Read on to learn more about what’s been happening in the San Diego rental market and how it compares to trends throughout the broader San Diego metro area and the nation as a whole.

San Diego rents are up 0.6% month-over-month and flat year-over-year

The median rent in San Diego rose by 0.6% over the course of June, and has now decreased by a total of 0.1% over the past 12 months. San Diego’s rent growth over the past year has has outpaced the state average (-1.4%) and is similar to the national average (0.0%).

San Diego rent growth in 2023 pacing below last year

Six months into the year, rents in San Diego have risen 3.2%. This is a slower rate of growth compared to what the city was experiencing at this point last year: from January to June 2022 rents had increased 7.3%.

June rent growth in San Diego ranked #43 among large U.S. cities

San Diego rents went up 0.6% in the past month, compared to the national rate of 0.4%. Among the nation's 100 largest cities, this ranks #43. Similar monthly rent growth took place in Long Beach, CA (0.6%) and Milwaukee, WI (0.6%).

San Diego is the #5 most expensive large city in the U.S., with a median rent of $2,447

Citywide, the median rent currently stands at $2,012 for a 1-bedroom apartment and $2,594 for a 2-bedroom. Across all bedroom sizes (ie, the entire rental market), the median rent is $2,447. That ranks #5 in the nation, among the country's 100 largest cities.

For comparison, the median rent across the nation as a whole is $1,175 for a 1-bedroom, $1,346 for a 2-bedroom, and $1,369 overall. The median rent in San Diego is 78.7% higher than the national, and is similar to the prices you would find in Santa Clarita, CA ($2,462) and Chula Vista, CA ($2,437).

San Diego rents are 1.0% higher than the metro-wide median

If we expand our view to the wider San Diego metro area, the median rent is $2,422 meaning that the median price in San Diego proper ($2,447) is 1.0% greater than the price across the metro as a whole. Metro-wide annual rent growth stands at 0.1%, above the rate of rent growth within just the city.

The table below shows the latest rent stats for 7 cities in the San Diego metro area that are included in our database. Among them, Carlsbad is currently the most expensive, with a median rent of $3,125. Escondido is the metro’s most affordable city, with a median rent of $2,230. The metro's fastest annual rent growth is occurring in Escondido (2.9%) while the slowest is in Carlsbad (-2.3%).

Source: ApartmentList.com