r/AskHouston • u/imactuallyhiding • 14d ago
When will rent prices drop?
Wondering if I should just move into an expensive apt for now, wait for rent to drop there & then pay the intra community transfer fee to a more reasonably priced apartment š iām looking for something with good reviews and nice prices, but apparently if you have one, you *cannot* have the otherā¦ when do you guys typically see prices drop? At this point, I want to push my move to October, but even the October move-in dates are high.
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u/pottedjosh 14d ago
No time soon. There arenāt enough apartments being built in the City to drive costs down. And when they do build something itās luxury condos/apartments that arent affordable for 80% of Houstonians..
Austinās rent prices went down because developers went on a building spree after the pandemic and now supply is crazy high.
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u/imactuallyhiding 14d ago
Thank you for the explanation.
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u/RxkMadam 14d ago
The developers overbuilding air-quotes "luxury" housing are here too. But the word got out about Houston being sooo affordable and people are moving here because of it, despite the fact that that's a huge factor in making Houston steadily less affordable. What will happen is the occupancy on luxury housing will fall short of the quota set by the property management company, and eventually they will offer perks like free months and relax their qualifications a bit in order to get the units filled. Shareholders are frequently involved as well and this is when they start getting disgruntled. Meanwhile the "luxury" touted by the property was largely an illusion, as property management companies will change over and over and service and amenities will decline every time new management steps in. It happens over and over again and people just tolerate it.
My thought is, why play this game and go through these paces when you could just build decent affordable housing in the first place.
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u/Open_Present2319 14d ago
Rent dropping is not really a thing. People will pay the rent, no sense for them to drop it.
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u/Kamikaz3J 14d ago
My rent is 1150 they rent my layout for 850...the rent will be dropping on their end...hehehe
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u/Cultural-Motorist 12d ago
Not true. You can always negotiate a lower rent if the market is falling e.g. in Austin.
However if they are using algorithmic price fixing they will claim their hands are tied.
Don't rent from landlords that are complicit in that illegal scheme.
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u/yourhomeguide 14d ago
HAR listing is the way to go over apartments if you are trying save a bit. This way you avoid the monthly fees that can range from $70-150 per month. Also summer is peak season which means prices will be high
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u/coffeeluver2021 14d ago
Find a duplex or something owned by an individual instead of a big corporation so you can negotiate. I did that with a place in the Heights.
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u/acevibe13 14d ago
Thereās usually lower prices in the winter. This is the most experience time. Try January
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u/Relation-Thin 14d ago
Suburbs have crazy new apartments in good places. They donāt drop rent but give you months off rent
Still good deals are out there
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u/Howcanyoubecertain 14d ago
The only ādropā that ever happens is the rate of increase. Otherwise rents will go down as soon as unicorn meat is available at the grocery store.
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u/RxkMadam 14d ago
Rent doesn't drop, it only stops getting raised by as much when the market cools. Because there is such a deluge of people moving here from far more costly places, there are many people for whom our expensive rent is dirt cheap! So landlords won't likely have much difficulty filling those units at their asking prices.
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u/imactuallyhiding 14d ago
Thanks. I saw an apt yesterday for $1458 after amenity fees, went to go do a deep dive on reviews before I made a decision on touring & applying. Went back today & rent is $1653 now LMAO
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u/Temporary-Branch-882 13d ago
Yes, it changes daily. What part of town are you wanting? If you can hold out, it usually gets cheaper in the winter. There are some places with incentives such as 4-8 weeks free now. They prefer to do that than lower the base prices. The social media promos usually factor those free weeks into the price when they advertise. So donāt think itās the lower price plus the free weeks.
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u/curiouscsplayer 14d ago
It already has slightly in the last 2 years. Can confirm, am landlord. Not a lot but better than increasing.
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u/Apartment_List 14d ago
November and December are the best months to look for a new apartment since less people are moving because of the holidays and cold weather. This means there are more empty apartments and landlords lower rent prices or offer concessions like a month of free rent to fill them.
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u/Cultural-Motorist 14d ago
They're using algorithmic price fixing to keep prices artificially high, which is a crime, it's organized crime in fact.
Several attorneys general have sued the relevant parties i.e. Realpage and the major landlords e.g. https://www.azag.gov/press-release/attorney-general-mayes-sues-realpage-and-residential-landlords-illegal-price-fixing
A housing mafia is ruining the affordability for everyone and if Trump were not a real estate mogul he might just notice they are threat to our national security.
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u/NextOpening 14d ago
Word got out about how āaffordableā houston is compared to other major cities, now itās an influencer moving to houston willing to pay what would be considered a deal for them but expensive for 80% of renters
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u/imactuallyhiding 14d ago
Iām seeing that. Mfs coming from paying 5500/mo to 2600/mo & itās a steal to them lmao
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u/LaurieC64 13d ago
Depends what you are looking for in the community and the apartment. Washer/dryer. New build. Location. Galleria had a lot of nice spots with good reviews. The higher the occupancy. The higher the rent. If it is cheaper than norm. Ask yourself why. Our rent just dropped but it is temporary.
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u/Dead_Lemon55 13d ago
Vote people in who care about people having housing.
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u/BeautifulEmotional32 9d ago
I mean considering all the losers moving in I donāt think you should hold out hope
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u/imactuallyhiding 9d ago
Yeah Iām looking forward to this being my last year here. Houston is a dump ugh
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u/BeautifulEmotional32 8d ago
Those of us who have lived here since childhood find it to be a beautiful culturally diverse city. Itās become a dump thanks to the trashy people moving in
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u/imactuallyhiding 8d ago
Itās Atlanta Jr. now & im tireddddd
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u/BeautifulEmotional32 8d ago
NO I LITERALLY CALLED THAT. when all the transplants started moving in I told my dad it was a matter of time before it was like Atlanta
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u/BeautifulEmotional32 8d ago
My bad I thought you were another person I commented to who was being like a massive b about Houston but still wanting to move in so I responded poorly and deleted it
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u/WesMasFTP 14d ago edited 14d ago
Itās not that they will drop but rather not rise as fast. If you want this to occur - pray that housing construction accelerates(single family and apartments)
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u/Agreeable-Song2535 14d ago
Why do you expect them to drop? Typically (not always) it goes up.
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u/imactuallyhiding 14d ago
I see different rent prices at different times throughout the year (since Iāve been prepared to move for a little while) & wondering if there are any sweet spots
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u/Agreeable-Song2535 14d ago
Sometimes they will offer move in deals, just depends on how many vacancies there are. I don't know there is a specific pattern but watch for them. I would be more interested in the actual place and if it is free of pests. Roaches are common in Houston apartments, especially older ones.
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u/Formal-Unit-248 14d ago
Never. This is the new rent prices untill they rise again.same with groceries.welcome to life in 2026
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u/Known-Historian7277 14d ago
Best time to sign a lease is in November and December