The Midwest is known for good manners and kind strangers, but hopeful renters shouldn’t be fooled. When it comes to finding the right lease, Midwestern cities are among the most cutthroat places in the country.
Much to the shock of shoebox-dwelling New Yorkers and cash-strapped Angelenos, it’s the Midwest, not the East or West coasts, that occupies 50% of the top spots for the country’s hottest rental markets in early 2025, according to a new report by RentCafe. CNBC first reported on the study.
Ten out of 20 of the most competitive places in the country to rent are in the Midwest region, RentCafe found, with suburban Chicago notching second place. Lansing-Ann Arbor and Grand Rapids, both in Michigan, made it into the top 10, with Cincinnati and Milwaukee close behind.
RentCafe’s ranking is based on a “Rental Competitiveness Index,” or RCI score, which takes into account factors like apartment vacancy, lease renewals and applicant numbers.
The country’s overall RCI score in early 2025 was 75.7, while the Midwest region clocked in at 79.5.
The Midwest has plenty of draws for renters in search of affordable prices and decent square footage.
Job opportunities and access to outdoor adventure are additional perks of living in cities like Grand Rapids — the study’s third-hottest rental market in the region and sixth nationwide.
It’s also home to a large concentration of Millennial and Gen Z renters, RentCafe reported, a surge largely driven by students and young people moving from bigger cities.
Miami, however, claimed the top spot. Despite a cooling real estate market in the Sunshine State, the South Florida city continues to establish itself as “Wall Street South,” attracting major companies, and their well-paid employees and CEOs, down south.
New apartment construction from the pandemic has finally begun to open up to city dwellers, particularly in large cities like New York City, Dallas and Austin, which lead the country in new rental units. In fact, the number of new multifamily units in the US last year reached the highest level since 1974, CNBC reported.
But the ribbon cuttings aren’t evenly distributed, and some metro areas are still feeling the housing supply squeeze. Young newcomers and a regional economic upswing helped suburban Chicago land second-place after Miami for competitiveness. Insufficient housing has led to a red-hot market in Evanston, Deerfield, Naperville and other suburban downtowns, the study found.
Renters are also increasingly choosing to stay put, hiking up occupancy rates. The trend of easing rents may not be around much longer, either, as nationwide rents begin to creep back up after months of consecutive declines, CNBC reported.
The smallest market on RentCafe’s top 20 list of hottest rental environments was the quaint community of Fayetteville, Arkansas.
A small city of just over 100,000 residents near the University of Arkansas, where vacant apartments are filling up in a record 22 days.
