Best Cities for Renters 2006
Where to Live When You're Renting

Sort by: Overall Score, Satisfaction, Affordability, Rental Availability (Vacancy)

The Cities | Methodology

score
Rank MSA Score 
1 Albuquerque, NM 54.51
2 Alexandria, VA 27.76
3 Anaheim, CA 6.72
4 Ann Arbor, MI 73.16
5 Arlington, TX 53.18
6 Arlington, VA 43.69
7 Athens, GA 79.67
8 Atlanta, GA 44.96
9 Aurora, CO 45.54
10 Austin, TX 56.37
11 Baltimore, MD 45.26
12 Baton Rouge, LA 39.44
13 Beaverton, OR 49.11
14 Bellevue, WA 38.08
15 Birmingham, AL 56.86
16 Bloomington, IN 69.79
17 Boston, MA 45.58
18 Bothell, WA 26.51
19 Boulder, CO 75.64
20 Carrollton, TX 67.30
21 Chandler, AZ 65.00
22 Charlotte, NC 66.15
23 Chicago, IL 60.31
24 Cincinnati, OH 82.04
25 Clearwater, FL 27.20
26 Cleveland, OH 60.76
27 College Station, TX 69.53
28 Colorado Springs, CO 75.31
29 Columbia, SC 67.84
30 Columbus, GA 82.99
31 Columbus, OH 50.05
32 Corpus Christi, TX 41.89
33 Costa Mesa, CA 1.96
34 Dallas, TX 60.76
35 Davis, CA 53.79
36 Decatur, GA 45.67
37 Denton, TX 75.35
38 Denver, CO 63.50
39 Durham, NC 68.08
40 East Lansing, MI 79.39
41 Euless, TX 67.69
42 Everett, WA 52.14
43 Federal Way, WA 35.31
44 Fort Myers, FL 25.08
45 Fort Worth, TX 65.19
46 Fremont, CA 46.25
47 Fullerton, CA 3.79
48 Gainesville, FL 57.53
49 Garland, TX 49.45
50 Glendale, AZ 47.99
51 Grand Prairie, TX 49.05
52 Grand Rapids, MI 78.92
53 Greensboro, NC 91.91
54 Greenville, SC 59.76
55 Harrisburg, PA 61.86
56 Henderson, NV 19.20
57 Houston, TX 58.67
58 Indianapolis, IN 69.47
59 Irvine, CA 60.39
60 Irving, TX 40.60
61 Jacksonville, FL 34.17
62 Kalamazoo, MI 74.40
63 Kansas City, MO 77.06
64 Kent, WA 39.85
65 Kirkland, WA 59.11
66 Knoxville, TN 75.80
67 Lansing, MI 79.21
68 Las Vegas, NV 22.12
69 Laurel, MD 32.43
Rank MSA Score 
70 Lawrence, KS 81.90
71 Lewisville, TX 47.87
72 Lexington, KY 58.33
73 Los Angeles, CA 19.30
74 Louisville, KY 61.82
75 Lynnwood, WA 37.48
76 Madison, WI 65.82
77 Marietta, GA 39.36
78 Melbourne, FL 39.15
79 Memphis, TN 37.93
80 Mesa, AZ 36.15
81 Mesquite, TX 67.82
82 Miami, FL 8.31
83 Minneapolis, MN 46.83
84 Mountain View, CA 29.69
85 Nashville, TN 68.70
86 New York, NY 48.16
87 Newark, DE 50.83
88 Newport News, VA 43.30
89 Norcross, GA 41.85
90 Oklahoma City, OK 57.29
91 Olympia, WA 74.32
92 Omaha, NE 68.58
93 Orlando, FL 20.32
94 Overland Park, KS 78.37
95 Pensacola, FL 55.01
96 Philadelphia, PA 26.74
97 Phoenix, AZ 35.28
98 Pittsburgh, PA 56.47
99 Plano, TX 70.69
100 Portland, OR 50.16
101 Raleigh, NC 77.07
102 Redmond, WA 40.58
103 Reno, NV 38.44
104 Renton, WA 49.21
105 Richardson, TX 61.15
106 Richmond, VA 55.04
107 Riverside, CA 34.00
108 Rochester, NY 66.53
109 Sacramento, CA 32.67
110 San Antonio, TX 52.15
111 San Diego, CA 19.56
112 San Francisco, CA 16.97
113 San Jose, CA 31.82
114 San Marcos, TX 61.08
115 Santa Clara, CA 34.01
116 Scottsdale, AZ 29.81
117 Seattle, WA 43.67
118 Silver Spring, MD 35.03
119 Spring, TX 71.09
120 St. Louis, MO 63.55
121 St. Paul, MN 57.87
122 St. Petersburg, FL 41.90
123 State College, PA 49.75
124 Sunnyvale, CA 27.29
125 Tacoma, WA 62.34
126 Tallahassee, FL 44.76
127 Tampa, FL 26.47
128 Tempe, AZ 38.03
129 Tucson, AZ 40.80
130 Tulsa, OK 66.40
131 Tyler, TX 71.33
132 Vancouver, WA 76.06
133 Virginia Beach, VA 29.37
134 Waco, TX 54.52
135 Walnut Creek, CA 32.54
136 Washington, DC 36.00
137 Wilmington, NC 59.33
138 Winter Park, FL 34.42

Methodology | The Cities

The Best Cities for Renters table is based on the results of analyzing data collected from users of ApartmentRatings.com regarding renter satisfaction and average rents along with data regarding local economic conditions from secondary sources. The index uses the most up-to-date information available from government research agencies for income and rental vacancy. The most current data were available for 2004 and 2005 respectively.

The Best Cities for Renters index is determined by the following variables: (i) Renter Satisfaction, (ii) Affordability, and (iii) Vacancy.

Renter satisfaction: Renter satisfaction includes approximately 76,000 ratings posted by visitors to ApartmentRatings.com from 7/1/2005 – 6/31/2006 for 138 cities. All cities for which a) 150 or more responses were available and b) with 45 or more apartments were included in the survey.

Affordability: Affordability was estimated by comparing information gathered from renters’ disclosure of monthly rental rates on ApartmentRatings.com from 7/1/2005 – 6/31/2006 for 138 cities with data from the US Bureau of Economic Analysis of 2004-2005 Per Capita Income in Metropolitan Areas (http://www.bea.gov/bea/newsrel/MPINewsRelease.htm).

Vacancy: Rental vacancy rates for 2005 were used as reported by the US Census Beareu for the 75 Largest Metropolitan Areas. Where MSA-specific Census Bureau data was not available, the statewide vacancy rate was used (also reported by the US Census Bureau, http://www.census.gov/hhes/www/housing/hvs/annual05/ann05ind.html).

 

Apartment Ratings Nationwide

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