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If your rent has gone up recently, you’re not alone.
According to the market research company Axiometrics, the cost of renting an apartment in the Phoenix area reached an all-time high in April.
On average, renters paid an average of $981 a month, up from $975 the month before. That represents a $39 increase from last year — in April 2016, rent in Phoenix averaged out to $942 a month.
Some communities have been seeing more changes than others. The neighborhoods with the largest increases in effective rent were Central Phoenix North, South Scottsdale, Glendale South, Maryvale, and the Avondale/Goodyear/Tolleson area — in that order.
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There’s been plenty of talk recently about the need for more affordable housing in metro Phoenix, particularly in the downtown area. While there’s a lot of construction happening, as the number of cranes downtown attests, the majority of the new units that are currently being built will be priced at market rates.
But the good news is that Phoenix is still a lot cheaper than the rest of the country. Axiometrics reports that the national average rent for April was a painful $1,299 per unit.
Sure, people under 35 are spending nearly half their monthly pay on rent, but it could be worse: we could be Seattle or San Francisco.
