Whether high home prices are what is keeping renters from buying, federal government job cuts that may be moving homeowners selling to rental units or jobs attracting out-of-town professionals, the D.C.-area apartment rental market is in demand right now.
RentCafe ranks D.C. No. 1 in July for apartment searches across its apartment listing platforms in the first half of 2025. It is based on analyzing traffic data covering 150 major U.S. cities. It said page views for D.C. listings are up 5% compared to the first half of last year, indicating more renters are actively browsing local listings.
There is also more for potential renters in D.C. to look at, with a 15% increase in available listings. Much of the new multifamily construction from a couple of years ago is now delivering to the market.
“D.C. and Northern Virginia both received about 5,000 new units last year, and both will see another 5,000 new units this year,” said Doug Ressler with RentCafe. “So renters have a lot more choices and a lot more new buildings with amenities.”
Even with an increase in available apartment units compared to a year ago, the D.C. apartment occupancy rate remains healthy, at about 90%, among the highest in the nation. The renter turnover rate — the share of renters renewing and staying put versus those moving to a new apartment or home — is low, mirroring national trends.
One reason for low renter turnover is cost. While the median monthly rent for a one-bedroom apartment in D.C. is a little more than $2,000, the cost to pack up and move to a new apartment is much more than that first month’s rent.
“For someone to move within the confines of the same geographic area, like within the same city, their budget is going to take a hit. It is somewhere around $4,000,” Ressler said.
That may cover one-time costs like movers, new deposits and storage.
The cost of renting an apartment in the D.C. metro has risen sharply in the last year, up 8.5% in July from a year earlier, according to Redfin. That is the third-largest annual increase, behind San Jose and Chicago.
In explaining why D.C. ranks No. 1 for apartment searches so far this year, RentCafe also points to more generic reasons, such as renters being attracted to a strong job market, walkable neighborhoods and strong transit options. Top out-of-town searches by potential D.C. renters this year have come from New York City and Baltimore.
RentCafe’s full first half 2025 apartment renter engagement report is online.
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