Cost to rent an apartment in Fresno continues to shatter records – and could go higher

Tim Sheehan
·3 min read

The median monthly rent to lease an apartment in Fresno was almost $1,400 in June – the highest it’s ever been, according to new estimates released Tuesday by online apartment listing company ApartmentList.com.

The June figures, which encompass all sizes of market-rate apartments in a community from studios up to four or more bedrooms, represent an increase of more than 33% since March 2020. At that time, the average rent was estimated at $1,047 per month, compared to $1,398 for June 2022.

This month’s median rent – the price at which half of apartments cost more and half cost less – in Fresno was also about 11% higher than a year ago. “This is the fourth straight month that the city has seen rent increases after a decline in February,” ApartmentList.com analysts reported in their Fresno rent report for June.

“Fresno rents have increased 0.6% over the past month, and are up sharply by 10.9% in comparison to the same time last year,” the ApartmentList report stated. The median rent across all apartment sizes in June 2021 was $1,261, about $137 per month lower than this month.

Still, “Fresno’s year-over-year rent growth lags the state average of 13.5%, as well as the national average of 14.1%, …” the report’s authors added. “Fresno is still more affordable than most large cities across the country.”

The median rent for a one-bedroom apartment in Fresno was estimated at $1,104, up from $996 a year ago. Two-bedroom units had a median rent estimated at $1,356 per month, compared to $1,233 in June 2021.

The ApartmentList methodology does not include public or subsidized affordable housing for low-income renters.

Among California’s largest cities, June 2022 rents in Fresno came in as the cheapest by a wide margin compared to Los Angeles, San Diego, San Jose and other major metro markets in the state:

  • Los Angeles: $1,899 per month, 0.4% increase from May 2022, 13.4% increase from June 2021.

  • San Diego: $2,387 per month, 2.3% increase from May 2022, 19.4% increase from June 2021.

  • San Jose: $2,464 per month, 2.0% increase from May 2022, 14.6% increase from June 2021.

  • San Francisco: $2,261 per month, 1.4% increase from May 2022, 7.6% increase from June 2021.

  • Fresno: $1,398 per month, 0.7% increase from May 2022, 10.9% increase from June 2021.

  • Sacramento: $1,668 per month, 0.8% increase from May 2022, 9.4% increase from June 2021.

  • Long Beach: $1,680 per month, 0.9% increase from May 2022, 12.3% increase from June 2021.

  • Oakland: $1,696 per month, 0.7% increase from May 2022, 5.5% increase from June 2021.

  • Anaheim: $2,134 per month, 0.6% increase from May 2022, 16.5% increase from June 2021.

  • Santa Ana: $2,134 per month, 0.7% increase from May 2022, 21.4% increase from June 2021.

ApartmentList senior research associate Rob Warnock said earlier this year that rising rents in the Fresno are a product of low vacancy rates that put landlords in the driver’s seat of the supply-and-demand equation. And even though rents in Fresno are not rising as fast as they were through much of 2021, finding an apartment at a reasonable price could get even more frustrating for would-be renters.

“Inflation is currently at its highest rate in 40 years, and rapidly rising housing costs are a key contributor,” Warnock said this week. “While the market has cooled slightly from last summer’s peak, the national median rent has still jumped by 14% in the past year.”

“With spiking mortgage rates now sidelining potentially homebuyers, the coming months could bring additional competition for rentals amid a market that is already historically supply-constrained,” he added.