Soaring prices for North Texas apartments squeeze renters

When Ashlynn Numayer graduated from Texas Tech last spring she had big dreams of moving to Dallas. She had a new degree and a new job, but what she didn’t account for were the thousands of dollars she would be paying in rent.

“Seeing my bank account go down every month after paying rent, it’s a lot,” Numayer said. “I feel like I’m really kind of not really making money.”

When it comes to finding a place to live in North Texas, renting has become just as competitive and expensive as a home, if not more so.

Numayer started off paying $1,600 for a studio. but quickly realized she needed more space. She currently pays $2,400 for a 735-square-foot 1-bedroom apartment.

“It is kind of hard realizing I’m paying so much money for an apartment, not a house, not a mortgage,” Numayer said.

If rent increases, she says she may be forced to move. And she is far from alone.

“The rents are just astronomical in Dallas,” said Realtor Brant Phillips. “There’s just no flexibility in the prices, so when someone comes to me and says ‘I want an apartment for x price’ … you might have been able to get that in 2020 or 2021, or even last year, but that’s just not possible right now.”

Phillips says rent generally increases about 1%-4% per year, but in 2022 it went up nearly 20%.

On Rent.com, a website with apartment listings, the average price of a studio in Fort Worth is $1,287. In Dallas it is $1,551, and in Frisco it is $2,280. 

According to Zumper, another apartment finder, rent for 1-bedroom units in Fort Worth has grown 28% since the pandemic, and 16% in Dallas.

“You’re kind of stuck with the prices that these apartments are demanding because they have the willpower and the flexibility to do that,” Phillips said.

The alternative to renting, purchasing a home, is also challenging. Due to high prices, rising interest rates and uncertainty in the economy, Phillips says many people are forced to put off buying. They rent longer, which creates even more competition.

“Ideally you rent for a year or two and you put some of your earnings into savings but when your rent is increased by $200 or $300 a month, that money that you were going to save is no longer to be able to be put aside.” Phillips said.

Some ways to save money include getting a roommate, lock into a longer lease term or compromising on things like size or location.