The question is always posed by consumers regarding the relative benefit of leasing vs. buying: "Should I rent for a year, or should I buy now?" Of course, the answer depends on each specific situation, although we know as practitioners that looking at a long-term view, it's very well proven that buying outperforms renting in the majority of cases.
Because our office does a fair amount of property management for residential units, we do follow the rental market very closely. And our perception is that rentals, just as properties for sale, are coming under pressure lately due to a weakening demand.
Here are a couple of charts, showing the average lease prices in Fort Bend county for the last 5 years (January through June). These values have been taken from the Multiple Listing Service, for all property types.
The first chart shows average monthly rental contract amounts. It clearly shows that average rent amounts in the first half of 2017 have been lower than their corresponding values for 2015 and 2016.
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The second chart presents the same information but normalizes the values on a per-square-foot-per-month basis, for a truer apples-to-apples comparison.
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So, should you lease right now, considering the values of the preceding charts? Well, if the above says anything, it means that renters seem to have some good negotiating margin when presenting those lease applications to landlords right now. It won't last forever, but it looks like a tenant market right now, mirroring what we are seeing in the sales market as well.
Remember, the values above are for Fort Bend county only, not for the whole Houston metropolitan area. Please call me with any questions or comments at (281) 744-0644. We are at your service!
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