In California, the estimated fair market rent for a two-bedroom accommodation amounted to 2,464 U.S. dollars in 2024. It was one of the least affordable states in terms of housing that year, as someone would need to earn at least twice the minimum wage to afford a two-bedroom rental unit there.

The average monthly rent for all apartment types in the U.S. soared in 2021 and 2022, followed by a slight decline in the next two years. In January 2025, the monthly rent for a two-bedroom apartment amounting to 1,356 U.S. dollars. That was an increase from 1,136 U.S. dollars in January 2021 but a decline from the peak value of 1,427 U.S. dollars in August 2022. Where are the most expensive apartments in the U.S.? Apartment rents vary widely from state to state. To afford a two-bedroom apartment in California, for example, a renter needed to earn an average hourly wage of nearly 42 U.S. dollars, which was approximately double the average wage in North Carolina and three times as much as the average wage in Arkansas. In fact, rental costs were considerably higher than the hourly minimum wage in all U.S. states. How did rents change in different states in the U.S.? In 2024, some of the most expensive states to rent an apartment only saw a moderate increase in rental prices. Nevertheless, rents increased in most states as of January 2025. In West Virginia, the annual rental growth was the highest, at seven percent.

The average monthly rent of apartments in California increased substantially 2021, followed by a period of stabilization. In May 2024, the average rent of a two-bedroom apartment cost over 2,200 U.S. dollars, up from 1,849 U.S. dollars in December 2020 before rents started to rise. Nevertheless, not all cities saw rents rise at the same pace.

The average monthly rent of apartments in Florida increased substantially in 2021, followed by two years of slight decrease. As of May 2024, the average rent of a two-bedroom apartment in Florida cost 1,557 U.S. dollars, which was an increase of 400 U.S. dollars from May 2020 when prices started to rise.

In the first quarter of 2024, Amsterdam was the most expensive city to rent a furnished one-bedroom apartment among the 23 leading European cities surveyed. At 2,300 euros per month, rent in Amsterdam was more than twice as high as in Brussels. Amsterdam was also the most expensive city to rent a private room.One of the main factors driving high rents across European cities is the same as any other consumer-driven business. If demand outweighs supply, prices will inflate. The drive for high paid professionals to be located centrally in prime locations, mixed with the low levels of available space, high land, and construction costs, all help keep rental prices increasing.

In 2024, New York, NY, was the most expensive rental market for one-bedroom apartments in the United States. The median monthly rental rate of an apartment in New York was 4,280 U.S. dollars, while in San Francisco, CA which ranked second highest, renters paid on average 3,160 U.S. dollars.

The monthly rent for two-bedroom apartments in San Francisco and Bay Area has fluctuated since 2015. In 2023, the median monthly rent for a two-bedroom apartment in San Francisco was 3,795 U.S. dollars, down from 3,970 U.S. dollars in 2021.

Depending on the location, the average price for a two-bedroom apartment in Mexico City could exceed 300,000 U.S. dollars in 2024. In Miguel Hidalgo, the most expensive borough to buy an apartment in Mexico City, the average apartment price was nearly 439,000 U.S. dollars for a two-bedroom apartment, while a three-bedroom apartment cost over 918,000 U.S. dollars. Among the boroughs ranked in the statistic, Coyoacán had the most affordable prices for a one-bedroom apartment, averaging 121,000 U.S. dollars. Overall, Mexico City has the highest average house price per square meter in Mexico.

In 2024, households in California needed an hourly wage of over 47 U.S. dollars to afford the rent of a two-bedroom apartment. Massachusetts had the second-least affordable two-bedroom apartments, as a household would have to earn at least around 45 U.S. dollars per hour in order to afford rent payments. These figures are considerably higher than the average minimum wage in place in many states. There was no state in which a minimum wage worker could afford rent for the average two-bedroom apartment, if they only worked 40 hours a week. Where are the least affordable counties and metros? The least affordable rents were predominately in Californian counties and metropolitan areas in 2024. District of Columbia has one of the highest minimum wages in the country, which stood at 17 U.S. dollars per hour as of January 2024. Thus, the affordability of two-bedroom apartments highlights how disproportionately high housing costs are in the state.

Apartment rents in two states and the District of Columbia in the U.S. exceeded 2,000 U.S. dollars in December 2023. In Hawaii, the median rent was about 2,200 U.S. dollars, more than 800 U.S. dollars higher than the national average. At the other end of the spectrum was Nebraska, when renters paid about 1,100 U.S. dollars for the median new lease. Overall, most states saw rental rates increase year-on-year.

As of January 2025, the rent for a two-bedroom apartment in Hawaii was about 120 U.S. dollars higher than in California. The states of Hawaii and California ranked as the most expensive within the United States for apartment renters. Conversely, an apartment in Arkansas was almost three times more affordable than one in Hawaii.In 2025, the average monthly rent in the U.S. declined slightly. Nevertheless, in rents increased in most states, with West Virginia registering the highest growth.

In the second quarter of 2024, Dublin 2 stood out with the highest average residential rent for a two-bedroom apartment in Dublin. The mean rental costs in Dublin 2 were 2,470 euros a month. Dublin 4 took the second spot with a rent of 2,345 euros per month. Other regions in Dublin in the top five were Dublin 1, Dublin 6, and South Co Dublin, boasting average rents ranging from 2,097 to 2,217 euros. Conversely, West Dublin emerged as the most affordable area, boasting an average monthly rent of 1,734 euros. Furthermore, Dublin 24, Dublin 22, North Co Dublin, and Dublin 15 joined the ranks of the top five most cost-effective districts in Dublin, with average rental charges ranging from 1,739 to 1,787 euros. Dublin is the most expensive rental market, followed by Wicklow and Kildare.

The monthly median asking rent for unfurnished apartments in the United States declined by about 74 U.S. dollars between in 2023. In the fourth quarter of 2023, the median rent amounted to 1,751 U.S. dollars, down from 1,825 U.S. dollars in 2022. This decrease followed a decade of steady growth, interrupted only in 2020 during the COVID-19 pandemic. The U.S. rental market As rental apartment vacancy rates fall, rents are on the rise. This makes it more difficult for Americans to, first, find an apartment to rent, and second, find an apartment which they can afford. Nevertheless, renting has become much more common in recent years, with the number of renter households having substantially increased in the past two decades. In 2023, there were approximately 45 million renter households in the U.S. Rents in different states Of course, rents vary from state to state. The most expensive rents are found in Hawaii, California, District of Colombia, New Jersey, and Florida. Following the COVID-19 pandemic, growth was the strongest in the Sun Belt states, and especially in states with lower costs of living, such as Texas. In Austin, TX, the average rent soared by nearly 26 percent in 2021, and remained elevated, despite a slight decline in 2023.

This statistic illustrates the monthly average rental price for two bedroom apartment in a new development in 2013, by London boroughs. By far the most expensive boroughs in London with respect to monthly rental of new apartments were Camden, with 3,735 British pounds monthly per two bedroom flat and Westminster, with 3,645 British pounds. For comparison, London-wide average monthly rental price for two bedroom new apartment was 1,677 British pounds in 2013.

Geneva, Switzerland, was the most expensive city to buy an apartment in Europe in the first quarter of 2024. The square meter price in Geneva was nearly 15,650 euros in that quarter, about 2,000 euros higher than the second city in the ranking, Zurich. Cost of rent Rents across the major cities in Europe increased significantly in 2023. One of the main factors driving high rents across European cities is the same as any other consumer-driven business. If demand outweighs supply, prices will inflate. The drive for high paid professionals to be located centrally in prime locations, mixed with the low levels of available space, high land, and construction costs, all help keep rental prices increasing. Mortgage rates The average mortgage interest rates across Europe in 2023 were all under five percent, except in Czechia, Romania, Hungary, and Poland. On an individual level, a difference of one percent would most likely mean thousands of euros in interest on the mortgage a person is paying, making timing key in house purchasing. Mortgage interest rates tend to be lower in Nordic countries due to the financial stability and reliability of its borrowers. Other factors that influence the mortgage interest rates include inflation, economic growth, monetary policies, the bond market and the overall conditions of the housing market. More stable markets also tend to have higher average prices.

Depending on the neighborhood, the average rent for a two-bedroom apartment in Montevideo, Uruguay was between 697 U.S. dollars and 1,266 U.S. dollars in May 2024. Punta Carretas was the most expensive neighborhood, with twice the average rent of Centro.

In the second quarter of 2024, Galway had the highest residential rent amongst major cities in Ireland. Properties in Galway on average were in the range of 1,279 to 2,430 euros, depending upon the size of the property. Limerick was the second most expensive city, with homes ranging from 1,274 to 2,418 euros. In contrast, Waterford stood out as the most affordable city compared to others, with properties available at rates ranging from 986 to 1,873 euros. In Dublin, the average rent for a two-bedroom apartment ranged between 1,734 and 2,470 euros, depending on the area.

The average price of a two-room apartment in the Bucharest Mall Vitan area, a very popular neighborhood of the Romanian capital, peaked in 2008 at approximately 120 thousand euros. By 2019, the average price of an apartment in that area dropped to 77 thousand euros.

This statistic presents the monthly rental prices for a furnished two-room apartment in selected European cities as of 2015. London led the ranking, with an average price per typically sized newly-built apartment amounting up to 2,840 U.S. dollars. It was followed closely by Geneva, with the monthly rental cost of 2,810 U.S. dollars.

One of the main factors driving high rents across European cities is the same as any other consumer-driven business. If demand outweighs supply, prices will inflate. The drive for high paid professionals to be located centrally in prime locations, mixed with the low levels of available space, high land, and construction costs, all keep rental prices increasing. Renting in European cities In the third quarter of 2023, Munich was the most expensive city to rent a furnished studio. For one-bedroom apartments or a furnished private room, the most expensive city was Amsterdam. At almost 1,650 euros per month, renting a studio in Munich cost about 1,000 euros more than a studio in Budapest. Owning a home In many European countries owning your home is more commonplace than renting – for instance, in Romania, the homeownership rate is over 95 percent. In the UK, affordability of housing is one of the leading housing concerns, with the majority of adults agreeing that first-time buyers getting on a property ladder is a very or somewhat serious problem. More in-depth information on the topic can be found in the report on residential real estate in Europe.