- 33.6% of U.S. renters have lived in the same home for at least five years, up from 28.4% a decade ago.
- Baby boomers stay put the longest, with more than a third having been in their rental at least a decade. Gen Z renters move the most, with more than half having lived in their current home for less than a year.
- Renters move most often in Denver, Austin and Salt Lake City. They stay put longest in New York, Los Angeles and Riverside.
A third (33.6%) of U.S. renters have lived in the same home for at least five years, up from 28.4% a decade ago.
That’s according to a Redfin analysis of 2023 renter tenure data from the U.S. Census Bureau—the most recent data available. There are more methodology details at the end of this report.
While the majority of renters move within five years—including 25.6% moving within 12 months and 40.8% moving between 1-4 years—the soaring cost of buying a home has pushed many to stay put for longer. The high cost of moving, or paying rental brokers in cities like New York, has also discouraged renters from moving regularly.
Nearly one in six (17%) renters had lived in the same property between 5-9 years in 2023, compared to 14.4% in 2013. Nearly the same number (16.6%) stayed in the same home for 10+ years, compared to 13.9% a decade earlier.
“Monthly mortgage payments have nearly tripled over the past decade, preventing many renters from being able to buy a home,” said Redfin Senior Economist Sheharyar Bokhari. “Rents spiked during the pandemic, but have stayed relatively flat over the past two years as home prices and mortgage rates continued to climb. That has encouraged renters to stay in the same home, where they are less likely to face major rent increases. The recent construction boom has also led to a record number of new apartments hitting the market, keeping rents down and setting 2025 up as a renter’s market where more Americans will choose to rent, or remain renters.”
Older renters more likely to stay in the same home longer than younger renters
More than a third (34.1%) of baby boomers have lived in the same home for at least 10 years, the most of any generation, while 56% have stayed put for at least five years.
At the other end of the age spectrum, more than half of Gen Z renters (52.4%) had lived in their home for less than a year in 2023, the highest share among the generations.
That’s in line with expectations that younger renters are more likely to move regularly for school and work opportunities, or to buy their first home.
Metro-level highlights:
The 50 most populous U.S. metros are included in this section
- Renters move most often in metros which became popular during the pandemic, including Denver, where 38% of renters stayed put for 12 months or less in 2023. That’s the highest share of the 50 most populous U.S. metros. Next come Austin, TX (37.8%) and Salt Lake City, UT (36.9%).
- Renters stay put longest in metros where the cost of buying a home is out of reach for many, led by New York, where just 14.9% of renters moved in 12 months or less in 2023. Next came Los Angeles (16.7%) and Riverside, CA (18.9%).
- Renters move less often than a decade ago in all of the 50 most populous metros in this analysis.
- At least one in five renters stayed in the same home for more than 10 years in five of the top 50 metros: New York (32.6%), Los Angeles (27.8%), San Francisco (26.4%), Providence, RI (20.9%) and Riverside, CA (20%).
- Less than one in 10 renters stayed in the same home for more than 10 years in 11 of the top 50 metros, led by Austin, TX (6%), Raleigh, NC (8.2%), Orlando, FL (8.2%), Jacksonville, FL (8.8%) and Denver (8.8%).
| Metro-level Summary: How long renters stay in their home, 2023 vs. 2013
50 most populous U.S. metro areas |
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| U.S. metro area | Share of renters who stay <1 year (2023) | Share of renters who stay <1 year (2013) | Share of renters who stay 10+ years (2023) | Share of renters who stay 10+ years (2013) |
| Atlanta, GA | 28.6% | 35.9% | 10.3% | 6.8% |
| Austin, TX | 37.8% | 40.8% | 6.0% | 5.9% |
| Baltimore, MD | 24.0% | 27.6% | 16.7% | 14.7% |
| Birmingham, AL | 29.4% | 32.2% | 14.3% | 12.3% |
| Boston, MA | 23.8% | 26.7% | 18.3% | 16.4% |
| Buffalo, NY | 22.0% | 24.6% | 19.2% | 18.4% |
| Charlotte, NC | 28.5% | 33.6% | 10.9% | 10.3% |
| Chicago, IL | 24.4% | 29.5% | 16.6% | 14.1% |
| Cincinnati, OH | 25.2% | 35.7% | 15.6% | 11.5% |
| Cleveland, OH | 24.5% | 27.3% | 15.5% | 14.9% |
| Columbus, OH | 31.0% | 34.4% | 11.0% | 9.7% |
| Dallas, TX | 32.5% | 39.0% | 8.9% | 7.2% |
| Denver, CO | 38.0% | 38.1% | 8.8% | 7.8% |
| Detroit, MI | 23.4% | 30.9% | 17.7% | 12.0% |
| Hartford, CT | 20.7% | 26.0% | 18.4% | 19.6% |
| Houston, TX | 33.2% | 38.0% | 9.8% | 8.0% |
| Indianapolis, IN | 28.7% | 34.9% | 10.7% | 8.0% |
| Jacksonville, FL | 32.4% | 38.2% | 8.8% | 7.6% |
| Kansas City, MO | 27.9% | 37.5% | 14.0% | 10.1% |
| Las Vegas, NV | 28.5% | 37.8% | 10.1% | 5.8% |
| Los Angeles, CA | 16.7% | 23.5% | 27.8% | 21.2% |
| Louisville, KY | 27.5% | 31.2% | 13.9% | 12.3% |
| Memphis, TN | 23.0% | 34.0% | 14.2% | 9.5% |
| Miami, FL | 26.2% | 31.6% | 13.8% | 11.4% |
| Milwaukee, WI | 23.8% | 29.8% | 14.3% | 13.1% |
| Minneapolis, MN | 30.6% | 35.4% | 11.0% | 9.5% |
| Nashville, TN | 32.3% | 36.3% | 9.7% | 9.6% |
| New Orleans, LA | 23.7% | 30.3% | 17.2% | 8.3% |
| New York, NY | 14.9% | 17.2% | 32.6% | 30.4% |
| Oklahoma City, OK | 30.8% | 38.6% | 9.7% | 8.2% |
| Orlando, FL | 32.4% | 33.3% | 8.2% | 5.4% |
| Philadelphia, PA | 23.0% | 25.1% | 17.0% | 16.4% |
| Phoenix, AZ | 33.4% | 37.3% | 10.0% | 6.7% |
| Pittsburgh, PA | 22.8% | 27.9% | 18.9% | 17.6% |
| Portland, OR | 27.9% | 35.4% | 13.7% | 9.0% |
| Providence, RI | 20.6% | 25.9% | 20.9% | 19.4% |
| Raleigh, NC | 29.7% | 35.5% | 8.2% | 9.4% |
| Richmond, VA | 27.3% | 37.3% | 12.3% | 12.1% |
| Riverside, CA | 18.9% | 30.9% | 20.0% | 11.9% |
| Sacramento, CA | 23.1% | 34.5% | 18.5% | 10.6% |
| Salt Lake City, UT | 36.9% | 41.3% | 9.4% | 8.2% |
| San Antonio, TX | 36.3% | 38.5% | 10.4% | 10.0% |
| San Diego, CA | 23.3% | 27.2% | 16.7% | 11.4% |
| San Francisco, CA | 20.8% | 23.4% | 26.4% | 18.7% |
| San Jose, CA | 26.1% | 27.6% | 17.9% | 12.9% |
| Seattle, WA | 33.2% | 34.6% | 10.7% | 10.2% |
| St. Louis, MO | 26.1% | 33.7% | 14.2% | 11.5% |
| Tampa, FL | 31.2% | 36.6% | 9.6% | 7.7% |
| Virginia Beach, VA | 27.3% | 35.5% | 13.3% | 10.3% |
| Washington, DC | 28.1% | 30.7% | 13.6% | 11.6% |
Methodology
The data in this report is from a Redfin analysis of renter tenure data from the U.S. Census Bureau’s American Community Survey* conducted in 2023, the most recent year for which this data is available.
The survey asks respondents whether they have moved within the last year, and U.S. residents receive the survey at different points throughout the year. That means the numbers reported for each year include both respondents who moved that year and people who moved the previous year.
Written by: Mark Worley