Tenants are always on the lookout for property where they can get the most bang for their buck.
And a new study has revealed the cities where Americans can get the cheapest rent per square foot — giving them the most bang for their buck.
Research of New Jersey Real Estate Network Johnstown, in Cambria County, Pennsylvania, ranked as the US city with the cheapest average rent per square foot.
In the city, which is 57 miles east of Pittsburgh, the monthly rent price per square foot is just $0.65.
That’s 63 percent below the average rate of $1.78 per square foot per month, according to the study.
Research from the New Jersey Real Estate Network ranked Johnstown, in Cambria County, Pennsylvania, as the U.S. city with the cheapest average rent per square foot
The research analyzed the monthly prices and square footage of rental listings in metropolitan areas with at least 1,000 listings to determine the cities where renters get the most bang for their buck.
Second on the list of cheap cities for space-seeking renters was Decatur, Illinois, where rent averages $0.69 per square foot per month — 61 percent below the national average.
According to the study, current rental listings in Decatur, which is about a 45-minute drive from Springfield, average 1,177 square feet in size — and the typical monthly rent is about $816.60.
In third place on the list was Pottsville, Pennsylvania, where rent averages $0.76 per square foot — 57 percent lower than the U.S. average.
Current rental listings in Pottsville average around 1,000 square feet, making for an average monthly rental price of $760.
The fourth best rent-to-space ratio comes from Carbondale, Illinois – at $0.79.
With current listings averaging about 930 square footage, the typical monthly rent here is $734, the study found.
In Johnstown, Pennsylvania, which is 57 miles east of Pittsburgh, the monthly rent price per square foot is just $0.65
It is followed by the cities of Ogdensburg, New York, Peoria, Illinois, Muncie, Indiana, and Altoona, Pennsylvania, in fifth, sixth, seventh, and eighth place, respectively.
All of these cities boast rental prices per square foot averaging between $0.86 and $0.87 per month.
Ninth place went to Cumberland, Maryland – at $0.89 – and the last place is held by Terre Haute, Indiana, with a typical rent of $0.892 per square foot per month.
This comes as rents begin to level off after going on a rollercoaster ride during the pandemic.
The average U.S. rent rose 0.4 percent to $2,011 in September, according to the latest data from real estate company Redfin.
This is the sixth consecutive month in which rents have changed little from a year earlier.
Second on the list of cheap cities for space-seeking renters was Decatur, Illinois
Rents in Milwaukee, Wis., Pueblo, Colo., and Tallahassee, Fla., all fall around the average — at $1.78 per square foot per month.
A spokesperson for the New Jersey Real Estate Network spoke about the findings: ‘There is a clear trend in this data that suggests that renters in the east of the country are generally getting more bang for their buck,’ said a spokeswoman for New Jersey Real Estate Network said.
‘This top ten of cheapest rent per square foot is occupied exclusively by eastern cities, while conversely the most expensive cities per square foot are almost exclusively west coast, mountain state and Hawaiian, with the one east coast exception of Key West in Florida. ‘
They added: ‘In an increasingly expensive rental market, it is interesting to discover the cities in which renters can get the best value in terms of spacious accommodation.’