We're in a renter's market (believe it or not)

NPR. If you are a long time renter, you've had a rough go of it for a while. The typical asking rent has gone up about 37% since before the pandemic, according to Zillow, which is why it surprised us when we were talking with Zillow senior economist, Cara Ng, and she said this. Yeah. So it's 2026, and renters, this is your year. It's a renter's market right now. Now renters, before you grab your sharp knives and your leases and say that that can't possibly be true, whether or not you live in a renter's market depends on where you live. This is the indicator from Planet Money. I'm Waylon Wong, and I'm here with NPR's personal finance reporter, Steven Bassaha. Thank you for having me back on the pod, Waylon. It is so fun to have you back, Steven. We've missed you. Missed being here too. And on today's show, we get to hear two vastly different renters' experiences from Nashville to Chicago and learn what makes a difference between a renter's market and a renter's nightmare. You guessed it. Location, location, location. Hi. It's Terry Gross, host of Fresh Air. Hey. Take a break from the twenty four hour news cycle with us and listen to long form interviews with your favorite authors, actors, filmmakers, comedians, and musicians, the people making the art that nourishes us and speaks to our times. So listen to the Fresh Air podcast from NPR and WHYY. The fatal shooting of a teenager at a protest in Seattle has gone unsolved for six years. This is open in your face. How are there no answers? Our investigation has uncovered new evidence and witnesses who say they've never talked to police. Did police ever call you? Not once. Listen to We Keep Us Safe, a new true crime series on the embedded podcast from NPR. For three weeks in 2020, part of my Seattle neighborhood was taken over by a protest occupation. We were here to protest police brutality. But it ended in tragedy. The whole space felt darker and angrier. Join me as I investigate the unsolved killing of 16 year old Antonio Mays junior. Listen to We Keep Us Safe on the embedded podcast from NPR. Before we zoom in on specific cities, if we look at The US as a whole, it does look like a renter's market. Yeah. If you look at rent in May, it was up about 2% from a year earlier according to Zillow. That's slower than the rate of inflation. And at the same time, wages grew faster than rent. A win win. And realtor.com even shows rent falling nationally. And the reason for that comes down to economics one zero one, supply and demand. The US has recently gone through an apartment construction boom. In 2024, The US built more than 600,000 units. That's the most in decades. That huge increase in supply has outpaced demand, at least nationally. Zillow economist Carrie Ng …