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71 February 2025 J O U R N A L February 2025 » estimated apartment size for a $2,000 budget would be 1,103 square feet, which corresponds to a median price per square foot of $1.81. In August 2022, when the average apartment was listed at an all-time high of $1.94 per square foot, the median asking rent reached its highest point at $1,700. This equated to a 1,029-square- foot apartment for a $2,000 budget, which is 74 square feet less than it is today. It is comparable in size to a tiny home office. In October 2019, five years before the pandemic housing bubble that drove rentals to skyrocket, the median asking rent in the United States was $1,337, or $1.47 per square foot. For a $2,000 budget, the estimated apart- ment size was 1,359 square feet, which is 256 square feet more than it is now. To put things in perspective, the typical bedroom nationwide is about 130 square feet. "Renters are getting more for their money than they were during the pan- demic because asking rents have since stabilized below their record high, and incomes have continued to climb," said Sheharyar Bokhari, Senior Economist at Redfin. "Rental affordability has improved thanks to the recent apart- ment construction boom, especially in Sun Belt states. That trend is likely to continue into 2025, as there are a lot of still-to-be-finished apartment buildings due to come online." Renters Getting More Value in Larger Apartments In general, the cost per square foot of smaller apartments is higher than that of bigger f lats. In October, a one-square-foot apartment with 0–1 bedrooms cost $2.09, but an apartment with 3+ bedrooms only cost $1.51. Smaller 0–1 bedroom apartments are more common in crowded metro areas like New York, where rents are higher, which contributes to their high- er price per square foot. Another important factor in deciding the size of an apartment that can be rented for a given price range is geography. In more than half of the major metro regions we examined in October, a renter on a $2,000 monthly budget may afford an apartment larger than 1,000 square feet. In Memphis, Tennessee, a renter with a $2,000 budget can acquire 1,000 more square feet than a tenant in San Jose, California, with the same budget. Memphis offers the best bargain for renters, with a 1,570-square-foot apartment costing just $2,000. The five metro areas where $2,000 is the most expensive for space rental are Birmingham, Alabama (1,523 square feet), Louisville, Kentucky (1,479 square feet), St. Louis (1,388 square feet), and Houston (1,380 square feet). On the east and west coastlines, where rents are higher, the situation is somewhat different. A renter in San Jose, with a $2,000 budget can only afford the smallest apartment in the most populated metro area, which is 537 square feet. That is a difference of al- most 1,000 square feet when compared to Memphis. Rental Budget (Monthly) Projected Apartment Size (Oct 2024) Projected Apartment Size (Aug 2022) Difference 2022→2024 $1,000 551 square feet 514 square feet +37 square feet $1,500 827 square feet 771 square feet +56 square feet $2,000 1,103 square feet 1,029 square feet +74 square feet $2,500 1,379 square feet 1,286 square feet +93 square feet $3,000 1,654 square feet 1,543 square feet +111 square fee Median Asking Rent (October 2024) Price Per Square Foot (October 2024) Square Footage ($1,000 Budget) Square Footage ($1,500 Budget) Square Footage ($2,000 Budget) Square Footage ($2,500 Budget) Square Footage ($3,000 Budget) 0-1 Beds $1,473 $2.09 478 717 956 1,196 2 Beds $1,695 $1.62 617 925 1,234 1,542 3+ Beds $1,980 $1.51 663 995 1,326 1,658