Kentucky Apartment Markets Rank Among Top 10 Southern Metros for Rent Growth

While apartment rent change in the South region has retrenched in recent months, two markets in Kentucky – Lexington and Louisville – have bucked that trend, both landing among the top 10 southern markets for annual rent growth in November 2023. Lexington recorded a 5.4% increase in effective asking rents during the year-ending November 2023, outperforming South region (-1.1%) and U.S. (0.2%) averages over the same period, according to data from RealPage Market Analytics. That rent performance earned Lexington the #2 spot in the South, trailing only Midland/Odessa. Rent growth in Lexington was boosted by minimal new supply alongside strong job growth of 3.7% in the year-ending October, outpacing the U.S. norm of 1.9% and ranking 8th place among RealPage’s 150 tracked markets. Over to the west, Louisville also outpaced both regional and national norms with effective asking rent growth of 3.5% in the year-ending November 2023, claiming the #8 spot in the South. While annual job growth in Louisville was comparatively weaker at 1.4%, limited new supply of only 1,000 units over the past year in this mid-sized South region market bolstered operator pricing power.