Looking For Lower Rent? Rent Decreased the Most in These 11 U.S. Cities in January While rent prices still increased overall in January, prices only rose by 2%, marking the smallest increase over the past 20 months.

Rent is still rising in some American cities, while signs of a slowing market have already taken hold in others.

While rent still increased in January overall, prices only rose by 2%, marking the smallest increase over the past 20 months, according to data by Redfin. Rent growth is up by 2.4%, but it's drastically lower than the peak of 17.5% in March 2022.

The rental market may be slowing because of waning demand and growing supply, signaling that prices may continue to fall in the coming months.

"We're watching closely to see whether rents start falling year over year. That would be a welcome relief for renters because it hasn't happened since the onset of the pandemic," said Redfin chief economist Daryl Fairweather, in the report. "If rents do start falling on a year-over-year basis, it will mean that renters have more room to negotiate. It may also prompt more landlords to sell their properties because they're no longer getting a good return on their investment."

However, the rental market isn't the same everywhere, and some metro areas saw prices drop considerably, while others still saw rental growth hit new heights. Phoenix, Arizona saw the biggest drop in rent growth with a 6.7% decline. Raleigh, North Carolina takes the prize for the largest increase with rent prices rising by 22.5%.

Related: Rent Prices Could Finally Be Cooling -- But Not in These Cities

Metro areas with the biggest rent decline

1. Phoenix, AZ (-6.7%)
2. Oklahoma City, OK (-6.3%)
3. New Orleans, LA (-5.2%)
4. Minneapolis, MN (-5.1%)
5. Houston, TX (-4.9%)
6. Baltimore, MD (-4.6%)
7. Birmingham, AL (-3.4%)
8. Chicago, IL (-3.0%)
9. Virginia Beach, VA (-1.8%)
10. Seattle, WA (-1.0%)
11. Austin, TX (-0.4%)

Metro areas with the biggest rent increase:

1. Raleigh, NC (22.5%)
2. Cleveland, OH (17.5%)
3. Indianapolis, IN (14.9%)
4. Charlotte, NC (14.2%)
5. Nashville, TN (9.8%)
6. Kansas City, MO (8.8%)
7. Louisville, KY (8.2%)
8. Milwaukee, WI (7.7%)
9. Jacksonville, FL (7.5%)
10. Providence RI (7.3%)

Related: This Is the Most Expensive Rental Zip Code in the U.S. — And It's Not in New York or San Francisco