Lexington, KY among cities with biggest rent hikes: Rent.com
Lexington ranks among the top 10 cities that saw the largest year-over-year increases in rent for typical one-bedroom apartments, with the city seeing an increase of about 40%.
That’s according to a recent Rent.com report, which put Lexington at the seventh spot on its list of priciest jumps with a year-over-year increase of 39.2%. Lexington fell just behind Little Rock, Ark., which saw a similar increase of 41.8%, and just above Richmond, Va., at 38.1%.
The report compared figures from August 2021 to August 2022.
Looking at median rental prices by zip code in Lexington, the 40503 zip code had the priciest rent for a middle-of-the-road apartment at $1,480 as of July, according to figures sourced from Renthub.com. The 40502 zip code wasn’t far behind at $1,338 for median rent.
As of May, the most recent data available through Renthub for the area, median rents in the 40507 zip code were also on the upswing, climbing to $1,370. Unlike the others, which are largely residential areas, 40507 is more of a commercial and business center in the heart of downtown Lexington.
Median rents in the 40505 and 40508 zip codes seem to be leveling off as of July, priced at $925 and $900, respectively.
Note: This graphic will automatically update as new data become available.
Across the U.S., Rent.com reports one-bedroom apartments saw the greatest increases month-over-month from July to August at 4.1%, or $70. Two-bedrooms followed close behind at 2.8%, or a $60-increase month-to-month.
For Kentucky as a whole, Rent.com reports a year-over-year increase of 55%. The average rent in the state in 2020 was $695, and it soared up to $1,081 in 2021, the report said.
So what does this mean for renters? That a full-time, minimum wage worker cannot afford a two-bedroom apartment in any state in the country.
Citing a recent report from the National Low Income Housing Coalition, Rent.com noted a worker would need to earn at least $25.82 per hour to afford a small, two-bedroom rental home. For a one-bedroom, that hourly wage is $21.25, but still well out of range for most low-wage workers.
In Kentucky, according to the NLIHC, minimum wage workers would need to put in 89 hours of work each week in order to make the rent on a two-bedroom rental home. The hourly wage needed to comfortably afford a two-bedroom rental home in Kentucky is $16.18, according to the NLIHC.
Note: This graphic will automatically update as new data become available.
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