United States · data to Sep 2026
How are rents?
Good.
Rents are rising 2.8% a year, a gentle pace.
For context: 2.8% is lower than 73% of all 536 figures since 1982.
Rents, year over year
Annual change in rents paid by households
The strip under the chart shows the verdict each period would get by today's rules:Good Mixed Bad
See the latest numbers
| Period | Value | Verdict |
|---|---|---|
| Sep 2026 | 2.8% | Good |
| Aug 2026 | 2.8% | Good |
| Jul 2026 | 2.9% | Good |
| Jun 2026 | 2.8% | Good |
| May 2026 | 2.9% | Good |
| Apr 2026 | 2.8% | Good |
| Mar 2026 | 2.6% | Good |
| Feb 2026 | 2.7% | Good |
| Jan 2026 | 2.8% | Good |
| Dec 2025 | 2.9% | Good |
| Nov 2025 | 3.0% | Mixed |
| Sep 2025 | 3.4% | Mixed |
Source: BLS, CPI-U rent of primary residence, annual % change, via FRED · Series CUSR0000SEHA · Latest Sep 2026
How we judged this
What we test: The latest figure (rents, year over year). Right now that's 2.8%.
- Good if under 3.0%applies now
- Mixed if from 3.0% to under 5.0%
- Bad if anything the rules above don’t cover
Rules are checked from the top. The first one that fits decides the verdict.
About this data
- Measure
- Rents, year over year
- Latest
- 2.8% (Sep 2026)
- Published
- Monthly, by BLS
- Verdict counts for
- Equal weight with the others in the overall verdict
Rent paid by tenants nationwide, as measured in the Consumer Price Index.
It covers all tenants, most of whom aren't moving, so it changes slowly and runs about a year behind the asking rents in new listings. Rents also vary a lot between cities and states.