While County Executive Marc Elrich and members of the county council discuss ways to make housing more affordable here, rent during the past 10 years has only risen an average of 2.1%, according to the county’s Planning Department.
A recent planning department presentation on an overview of rental housing in the county noted that the 2.1% increase, when adjusted for inflation, really means that rents decreased slightly. The 10-year rent growth average was actually -0.5% when adjusted for inflation, according to the presentation.
About 35% of housing in the county is renter occupied.
Rents did spike by 9% in 2021 but that appeared to be unusual and related to the expiration of the county’s rent stabilization measures it adopted during the pandemic.
There are 42,000 more rental households in the county as compared to 1990. Most of the renters are at least 35 years old and are Black or African American, according to the planning department. Almost three-quarters of renter households are in buildings with at least five units.
Generally, guidelines recommend that people spend up to 30% of their income on housing costs. The percent of renter households spending more than 30% of their income has remained at around 50% since 2010. It was 48% in 2020 and 49% in 2021.
The average rent was slightly less than $1,600 in 2012. In 2022, it was $1,900. The highest rents per square feet can be found in Bethesda ($2.90), followed by North Bethesda ($2.42).
Countywide, rent averages $2.11 per square foot. In Washington, D.C., the average rate per square foot is $2.81. In Arlington County, Virginia, the rate is $2.68.
Casey Anderson, who was chair of the Planning Board until the county council asked for the entire five-member board’s resignation in October of 2022, now writes a blog called, “No Little Ideas.”
In a recent post, Casey wrote, “Compared to the rate of price increases in the economy as a whole, rents have actually declined over the past decade, averaging a 0.4 percent decrease after adjusting for inflation. According to CoStar, a real estate data provider, average effective rents for newer apartments in Montgomery County are now about $2,000 a month versus just under $1,600 a month in 2012. The fact is that $2,000 in 2023 doesn’t go as far as $1,600 did in 2012.”
Casey also wrote that while rents are high, he does not believe rent control is the answer as it “threatens to torpedo new construction.”
At his re-election victory party in Silver Spring, Elrich said he would like to bring rent control to the county, especially at construction near the Purple Line.
The county’s COVID-19 rent relief program is not accepting any more applications. The fourth phase is the last one as the program no longer receives federal funding.
The rent program is managed by the county’s Department of Health and Human Services. Under phase four of the program, DHHS has approved assistance for about 1,500 households and processed more than 3,300 applications, according to the county.
More than $93 million in assistance has been provided since the program started.
We will be presenting at the @MoCoCouncilMD's Planning, Housing and Parks Committee on Jan. 30 at 1:30 pm. The event will feature a panel discussion with housing and policy experts on the state of rental housing affordability in Montgomery County. Watch: https://t.co/tSokIpoksM
— Montgomery Planning (@montgomeryplans) January 28, 2023
