When you think of Brookline, you think of beautiful Victorian architecture in a beautiful dense suburban setting. Even some of the newer buildings in Brookline have a hint of old school elegance in their design. Widely considered Boston’s best suburb, Brookline apartments are highly sought after and rent is priced accordingly. Though it is not a very affordable city to live in, the metro area’s rapidly growing tech industry has kept demand for housing high in Brookline. As a result, Brookline is one of the few neighborhoods outside of the city where the average rent price exceeds that of Boston.
Brookline Average Apartment Rents 2021
The average rent price of all Boston apartments is currently $2,532, while Brookline has an average rent price of $2,761. This year was the first in many where Brookline had its second consecutive year of rent loss. The year-over-year change in the average rent price has dropped by -0.40% in Brookline. Boston recorded a similar YOY drop in apartment prices ( -0.38%). For those looking for more budget-friendly options, considering rooms for rent in Boston might be a viable alternative.
The average rent price of a studio apartment in Brookline is $1,730. As you look at larger options like 1 bedroom ($2,145), 2 bedroom ($2,652), 3 bedroom ($3,406) or 4 bedroom ($4,165) apartments, the average rent price exceeds that of Boston from $100-$500 across all size categories.
If you observe the year-on-year change in average rent price, you’ll see that demand is on the rise for 2 bedroom (+1.34%), 3 bedroom (+0.44%) and 4 bedroom (+2.38%) apartments in Brookline. The same cannot be said about for studio (-1.54%), 1 bedroom (-3.07%) and 5 bedroom (-10.50%) apartments which have dipped since last year.
These rent drops were undoubtedly spurred by the market uncertainty that has persisted through most of 2021 and 2020. Now that Brookline’s apartment availability has recovered to their usual low levels, don’t expect rents to keep falling here. Apartment prices in Brookline should swing upwards in 2022 as apartment availability shrinks.
Brookline Apartment Supply & Vacancy Trends
The real time availability rate (RTAR) in Brookline is currently at 1.65% and the real time vacancy rate (RTVR) is 1.05%. Over last 12 months, the RTAR in Brookline has dropped -79.88%. There has also been a drop of -82.76% in the RTVR during the same time span. This is impressive considering only a month ago, Brookline’s apartment supply numbers were looking dismal.
This goes on to show that the demand for rental properties has recovered in Brookline during 2021. The fact that apartment supply numbers are within 10% of there pre-pandemic levels of December 2019 proves it even further, and suggests that things are looking even more positive for Brookline’s apartment rental market heading into 2020.
