Rent prices on the rise again in Charlotte; up 11.5% year-over-year

CHARLOTTE, N.C. (WBTV) - Rent prices are on the rise again in Charlotte and across the nation.

A report from Redfin shows national rent prices increased by 14 percent in the month of December, the largest jump in over 2 years.

“The closer you go to Uptown, you’re going to have to pay for it,” said Bri Kubista of Charlotte.

Redfin reported the average cost of rent in Charlotte is $1,730 a month, and rent increased by 11.5% year-over-year.

Due to the high cost, people working in Charlotte are choosing to live further from Center City.

Marc Renfro said, “definitely kind of avoided the downtown area as it was getting pretty expensive for our pocketbooks.”

Renfro and his wife recently moved to the Charlotte area from Denver and chose to live in Huntersville.

“It’s definitely a fun environment to live downtown, you love to be here, but just with the way rent is, it’s not something that’s completely viable for us, we do want to save up and buy a house and with increasing rent costs that can be very tough, so that’s why we made that decision,” said Renfro.

Redfin says the average cost of mortgage in Charlotte is $1,448, and it increased 27.1% year-over-year. With mortgage rates are increasing, it will likely cause rental prices to increase as well.

Kenneth Robinson, the president of Freedom Fighting Missionaries said, “once you factor in the other rising cost of inflation, things like food, the price of gas, then you simply cannot survive living up here.”

People are choosing to move to Gastonia, Huntersville, Rock Hill, University City and points further to pay lower prices in rent.

Freedom Fighting Missionaries says the increase in rental prices is impacting how the organization helps people. The nonprofit works with formally incarcerated people and those experiencing homelessness.

“More individuals are in need of low-income housing that simply does not exist, therefore making our job tougher,” said Robinson.

As rental prices increase in Charlotte and throughout the nation, people are concerned about being priced out even more with each passing month.

Kubista said “especially with all of the building going on and the gentrification going on through the city, yeah, we’re definitely worried about the rent going up.

People believe the average price for a 1-bedroom in Charlotte should be between $1,100 and $1,300 a month and say the $1,730 a month average is ridiculous.

Freedom Fighting Missionaries tells me Mecklenburg County does offer a rent subsidy program, but it is income-restricted.

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