Atlanta lands in top 10 of best cities for renters in 2021

Looking to rent a new pad in metro Atlanta? You may want to watch this According to the National Low Income Housing Coalition (NLIHC), you need to earn over double the federal minimum wage. The fair market rent in Atlanta for a two-bedroom apartment is $1031 To afford that you would have to make $41,240 a year – which is a "housing wage" of $19.83 an hour The state average for this housing wage is a bit lower, at 17.53 per hour, or $36,459 That number ranks Georgia 27th nationally and one of the most exp

According to SmartMove, renters are looking for several features when it comes to their next home.

Among the options that the online independent landlord screening service states renters want are location, included appliances and safety and security, to name a few.

Forbes Advisor recently released a list of the best cities for renters in 2021, and those qualities have been taken into account.

“The pandemic has shown us that having a good amount of living space is essential. Especially for those working from home, space for a home office is important. That’s why we put emphasis on apartment qualities in our rankings. This includes amenities like pools and in-unit washers and dryers that are more than conveniences—they can make life more enjoyable,” Amy Danise, chief insurance analyst at Forbes Advisor said in a statement.

“Finding a good apartment means evaluating the inside and outside, and that’s what we did in our rankings,” she added. “We scored the insides: good space, quality kitchens, in-unit washers and dryers. And we measured outside qualities: parks, weather and crime. When you add a good rental price in, you’ve found the best cities.”

The personal finance, advice, news and reviews resource discovered the best cities for renters by scoring the 100 largest U.S. cities using various data sources. They included collecting information on apartments, weather and disaster risk and park information from sources such as Apartments.com and The Trust for Public Land.

Atlanta managed to make it into the top 10, coming in at No. 6 on the list.

On average, a 2-bedroom apartment in the City in the Forest costs $1,608 a month to rent and is on average 1,114 square feet. Thanks to its lush landscape, 72% of the population is within a 10-minute walk to a park. Not immune to severe weather, the biggest weather and natural disaster risks are heatwaves and tornadoes.

Ultimately, Atlanta scored 809 out of 1,000.

“Atlanta lets you go big: It has the largest average apartment sizes among the 100 large cities in the U.S.,” Forbes Advisory wrote. “It should be easy to find an apartment building with a gym (75% have them) and a new or updated kitchen (34% have stainless steel appliances). You may also be able to snag an apartment with an in-unit washer and dryer (half have this perk).”

Best Cities For Renters 2021

1. Plano, Texas

2. Omaha, Nebraska

3. Raleigh, North Carolina

4. Lincoln, Nebraska

5. Gilbert, Arizona

6. Atlanta, Georgia

7. Scottsdale, Arizona

8. Henderson, Nevada

9. Virginia Beach, Virginia

10. Charlotte, North Carolina