SF Bay Area Tops List As Nation's Worst Place For Renters
SAN FRANCISCO (CBS SF) -- If you spend most of your weekends on Craigslist or elbowing your way through crowded open houses for overpriced rentals, this should come as no surprise: the San Francisco Bay Area is the worst place in the country to rent.
San Francisco, the East Bay and Silicon Valley snagged the top three spots (in that order) on Forbes list for cities' with plummeting vacancy rates and year-over-year rent increases.
Low-vacancy rates are largely to blame for the competition, with San Francisco sitting at 2.6 percent, Oakland at 2.9 percent and San Jose at 3.5 percent. That's compared to Las Vegas' 6.6 percent vacancy rate and $767 average monthly rent which lets renters in Sin City be a bit more selective with where they live.
Meanwhile, the Bay Area's high-demand means landlords can continue to raise prices. Last year, rent increased by 12.8 percent in San Francisco, 10.5 percent in Oakland and 11.3 percent in San Jose. On average, a one-bedroom apartment in San Francisco costs $3,120.
Even though the Bay Area has added thousands of new developments over the last couple of years, it's not enough to keep up with the Bay Area's growing population of over 7 million people.
READ MORE: San Francisco's Tiniest Closet-Like Condo Just Sold For $415K
Read the full report here.
