U.S. — The typical monthly rent in the United States reached $1,910 in March, 1.8% higher than a year earlier, according to a Zillow study. That annual rate of increase was the slowest recorded since December 2020.

Income growth in March exceeded the growth in rental costs. The median household spent 26.5% of its income on rent during the month, and a household needed to earn at least $76,400 a year to afford the typical monthly rent of $1,910, a figure 35% higher than before the pandemic, according to the study.

"Rents surged after the pandemic due to a sharp increase in demand colliding with limited supply and strong fiscal support," Zillow senior economist Kara Ng said. "Growth is now slowing as new supply comes online, demand normalizes and affordability constraints reduce landlords' pricing power."

Single-family rents rose 2.5% on an annual basis in March, the slowest rate Zillow has recorded since it began collecting the data in 2015. Zillow defines single-family homes as attached or semi-attached row houses, duplexes, quadruplexes and townhomes. Multifamily home rents in March averaged $1,757, 1.3% higher than a year earlier. Since early 2020, single-family rents have increased by nearly 45%, while multifamily rents have risen 28%, according to Zillow.

Among the largest U.S. cities, monthly rents in Austin, Texas, were 2.3% lower in March than a year earlier, according to the study. Rents in Tampa, Florida, and San Antonio, Texas, were each 1.6% lower than in the previous year. The data covering single-family rent growth stretches back to 2015, when Zillow began tracking that category, while the December 2020 benchmark for overall rent growth reflects conditions during the early period of the pandemic.