During its quarterly update, HUD’s Office of Policy Development and Research shared alarming trends in rents, with the average nationwide rent in September 2021 rising 12.5% compared with rents in September 2020. These drastic rent increases in the apartment market compare to previous year increases in the low single digits. The nationwide average encompasses differences among rural/metropolitan areas, as well as regional differences: In the Southeast and West regions, rents increased by 19.3% and 14.6%, respectively, while rents in the Northwest rose 10.9%. The increase in rent costs reflects widening housing instability as the country navigates the end of the federal eviction moratorium and a slow roll-out of emergency rental assistance funding. Also during HUD’s update, a panel of experts, including Peggy Bailey, Senior Advisor in HUD’s Office of the Secretary, and Margaret S. Salazar, Executive Director of the Oregon Housing and Community Services Department, discussed ongoing eviction prevention efforts. The panel discussion covered HUD policy changes to prevent evictions, and the state and local administration of rent relief.
