Drew Dixon
With housing shortages persisting and real estate prices continuing to increase, demand for rental properties is surging and Miami is now the most competitive rental market in the U.S.
RentCafe, a renter advice company, issued its Rental Competitiveness Report this month and assessed the markets where it’s the hardest to find a rental unit. Miami topped the list and two other Florida markets were in the top 20.
RentCafe established a Rental Competitiveness Index (RCI) by comparing the number of days apartments were on the market, the percentage of apartments occupied by renters, the number of prospective renters competing for one apartment, the percentage of renters who renewed their leases and the share of recently built apartments in the market.
Miami scored the highest RCI in the country, at 93.1. Rental units were vacant for an average of 36 days in Miami, the lowest number of vacant days in the country. Some 96.3% of all apartments are rented in Miami, another national high. Lease renewals were at 76%, topped only by suburban Philadelphia, which had a 77.1% lease renewal rate. Philadelphia was ranked the fifth-most competitive rental market in the country.
“Miami continues to reign supreme as the most competitive rental market in the U.S. at the start of 2025. Notably, the metro’s RCI score of 93.1 significantly exceeds the national average by 17.4 points,” the report concluded.
“Throughout the last few years, Miami has established itself as “Wall Street South,” attracting major banking institutions and investment firms, while existing industries like tech and healthcare continue to grow, bringing in more workers. Plus, Miami’s lack of income tax and its location at the crossroads of the Americas remain major draws for professionals and businesses.”
Broward County was listed as the 13th-most competitive rental market in the country, with Orlando coming in at 19th. Only California and Michigan also had three cities in the top 20.
Even in the regional rankings, Florida as a whole appears to be a trying area to get a rental unit.
RentalCafe split the country into 10 regions for a separate ranking, with California and Florida listed as their own regions due to the substantial populations in each state. The Midwest had the highest RCI at 79.5. But Florida was a close second, coming in at 78.9.
