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The average size of new apartments in the US registered the largest year-over-year decline in 2022 as more studios and one-bedroom units entered the market, according to rental portal RentCafe.
The average size of the apartments in 2022 stood at 887 square feet versus 917 square feet a year earlier, the portal said, using data from RentCafe’s sister company, Yardi Matrix. That marks a 54 sq. ft. drop for 10 years.
This follows two straight years of increases in average apartment size, during 2020 and 2021, as developers adjusted floor plans to accommodate home offices amid the pandemic.
“With some of the highest construction levels in half a century, the year was marked by a need for more housing across the country,” RentCafe noted.
The ratio of studios to one-bedroom units reached an all-time high of 57% of total apartments built last year.
The decline in apartment sizes comes as rental price increases are slowly slowing, according to the Zumper National Rental Report for January. The national one-bedroom rental index fell 0.3% from the previous month to $1,492. Meanwhile, the national index for two-bedroom apartments held steady through January, he said.
The South topped the list in terms of median apartment size in 2022, at 993 square feet. But renters in the Pacific Northwest had the least amount of space: just 776 square feet, according to RentCafe’s analysis.
In terms of cities, Tallahassee, Florida, had the largest apartments last year at 1,182 square feet, offering an additional 295 square feet compared to the national average.
Meanwhile, Seattle offered the smallest apartments in 2022, at 659 square feet. The Washington tech hub saw a 5% decrease in apartment sizes compared to 10 years ago.
Apartment REITs include: Equity Residential (EQR), Independence Realty Trust (IRT), AvalonBay Communities (AVB), Camden Property Trust (CPT), and Apartment Income REIT (AIRC).
Previously, new home sales rose unexpectedly in January.