Neighborhoods Where it 'Makes Cents' to Rent

Renting an apartment in Los Angeles, New York City, or other large U.S. metros may seem cost prohibitive. A new study unearths affordable rental neighborhoods in 10 major cities. (Even San Francisco!)

Using data on median listing prices by ZIP code, and filtering by commute time and crime rate, Realtor.com finds one-bedroom apartment median prices that are in some cases nearly $1,000 less than the metro median. For example, San Francisco's Parkmerced neighborhood's share of renter households is over half, 56.4 percent, with a median one-bedroom rent of $2,588, whereas San Francisco's median is $3,490. In New York City's Arrochar neighborhood on Staten Island, the median one-bedroom goes for $1,475 per month, when the metro-level median rent is $2,860.

The Newtonian laws of real estate dictate that for every action there is an equal and opposite reaction. So when the sales market for new homes crashed and immolated a decade ago, folks flocked en masse to rentals in America's top metros. But here's the thing: They never stopped flocking! More Americans are renting now than at any point since LBJ was in the White House, according to a Pew Research Center analysis last year—nearly 37 percent of households, in fact.

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