If you're looking for an apartment and hoping you can afford one larger than a walk-in closet, then be glad you live in Atlanta.
A new report by apartment search website RentCafe and its sister company Yardi Matrix puts Atlanta at the top of the heap for U.S. cities with the largest rental apartments.
RentCafe analyzed apartment sizes in the 100 largest U.S. cities, including only buildings containing at least 50 rental units.
Throughout the country, the average size of new apartments shrank 8 percent, from 1,015 square feet in 2006 to 934 square feet in 2016.
Atlanta ended up fourth in average studio apartment size, at 570 square feet; second in average one-bedroom size, at 786 square feet; and "incontestably rules the apartment size charts when it comes to 2-bedroom rentals," with an average of 1,125 square feet.
But don't think rent is going down just because apartment sizes are.
According to RentCafe, "(a)partment rents are breaking record after record, with the national average hitting an impressive $1,204 in May. While rental rates will moderate as new supply kicks in, this is not the kind of thing that happens overnight."
And while no one would call Atlanta rent cheap, RentCafe points out it's a bargain compared to other large cities.
"Rentals in Atlanta go for an average of $1,240, with 2-bedroom apartments commanding approx. $1,295/mo, Yardi Matrix data shows. That's less than a third of what San Franciscans shell out on a 2-bedroom apartment every month (approx. $4,400). Meanwhile, renters in Miami pay $1,617 on average for 2BDR apartments, approx. 25% more than Atlantans do."
If you're in the market to rent an apartment, here's where to get the best bargains for less than $1,200 a month.
Just make sure you earn at least double the minimum wage, because a February study by the National Low Income Housing Coalition says that's how much you need to make to rent in Atlanta.
Where should look for your new place? Here are the 10 most expensive and 10 least expensive ZIP codes in the Atlanta area.
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