Trulia, a real estate site and subsidiary of Zillow Group, compiled a report that shows which U.S. cities are the least affordable for renters. The takeaway: if you’re looking for a cheap one-bedroom, it’ll be tough to come by in San Francisco and New York.
Trulia measured the concentration of 1-bedroom rentals priced between $2,000 and $4,000 per month in San Francisco and four New York City boroughs—Manhattan, Brooklyn, Queens, and the Bronx—Manhattan, of course, being the most expensive of the four.
Less than 10% of one-bedroom rentals cost under $2,000 per month in the Golden Gate City, and more than half cost $3,000 or more. The median price throughout the city to rent a one-bedroom apartment or home is $3,200.
The neighborhoods that have the highest concentration of high-price rentals are Fisherman’s Wharf, Mission, and Pacific Heights. Median rent in the Wharf and Mission is $3,500, with rental prices over $3,000 for 82.8% and 78.8% of one-bedroom homes respectively. The median price for Pacific Heights rentals is slightly higher at $3,600, with 73.8% of one-bedrooms priced at more than $3,000.
Manhattan has more one-bedroom apartments and homes available to rent at under $2,000—a whopping 10.7% as compared to San Francisco’s 9.6%—but also has a denser concentration of higher priced apartments. 57.5% of Manhattan one-bedrooms cost $3,000 or more per month and 19.8% cost $4,000 or more per month; in San Francisco the numbers are a bit lower at 55.0% and 15.3%. The median price for one-bedroom rentals in Manhattan is just above San Francisco at $3,250.
Brooklyn has a much more generous concentration of affordable one-bedroom rentals. Just over half, 51.3%, cost $2,000 or more per month, and only 2.4% cost $4,000 or more. The numbers decrease significantly when you move towards Queens. 16.8% of one-bedrooms in the royal borough rent for $2,000 or more a month, and in the Bronx it drops down to 3%.
