Against a backdrop of increasing demand for affordable housing and home ownership rates leveling off, Apartment Guide announces the release of its 2019 Rent Report, showing that average rent prices across the country began the year 4.2% higher than at the start of 2018.

The report looks at average rent price fluctuations across the U.S. in 2018 and breaks down national, regional and city-level trends for studio, one-bedroom and two-bedroom apartments for rent.

Among other significant findings:

While up year over year, nationwide average rents are slightly down from September 2018 highs

The Northeast is by far the region with the highest rents, with two-bedroom averages up above $3,000 per month

The South is the region with the lowest rent increases year over year, followed by the Midwest

Among the top 100 U.S. markets by population, Newark, N.J., saw the biggest annual increase, with average rent prices rising 17.5% between December 2017 and December 2018

New Orleans represents the top 100 city with the largest year-on-year decrease, as rents dropped 11.4%

This annual analysis also combines cost of living data and U.S. Census information to highlight some of the annual changes. Get the full 2019 Rent Report with insights and takeaways at ApartmentGuide.com.

The data used for this report were compiled using rent prices for multifamily rental property inventory from December 2017 to December 2018 on ApartmentGuide.com. Living expenses for featured cities were sourced from Cost of Living Index 2018 Third Quarter Data compiled by the Council for Community and Economic Research. Trend analysis was performed using data furnished by the U.S. Census Bureau, with specific sources cited at appropriate places in the text.