You can guess which cities are at the top RentCafé’s most popular rental markets early 2026? Miami? Phoenix? Austin?
Try Cincinnati, Atlanta and Minneapolis. They indicate a quiet shift towards affordable, job-rich metropolises that small investors can also buy into possible cash flow by. While the coasts boast luxury living and high-quality jobs, early data indicate that the best opportunities for workers and investors in the coming years could be in the Midwest and inland South.
What RentCafé’s new rankings really show – and what they don’t
RentCafé based its ranking system on the behavior of tenants on its platform. To compile the list that gauges renter demand, the site researched four specific areas and ranked the markets accordingly:
- Availability of apartments
- Favorite entries
- Saved searches
- Page views
Cincinnati rose to first place thanks to some impressive statistics. The number of apartments preferred by potential tenants increased by 81% year on year, while the number of saved searches increased by 14% by the end of 2025 and the number of page views increased by 3%. Atlanta’s second-place finish was driven primarily by potential renters from New York and throughout Georgia, indicating continued immigration from higher-priced markets.
Minneapolis was one of RentCafé’s top position holders at the time the data has been collectedFavorite listings increased 29% year-over-year, fifth for total searches saved and ninth for page views. However, this was collected before ICE immigration policies in the city, which caused unrest and affected rental property occupancy and the pace of new construction, according to reports in the Star Tribune And Dive with several families.
Overall, RentCafé’s report found that the Midwest accounted for 11 spots and the South 10 spots on the annual list, primarily reflecting the affordability, livability and amenities available in rental properties and surrounding areas in traditional blue-collar cities like Minneapolis, Cleveland and Detroit, as well as in Western markets like Santa Ana, California.
That does not mean that in-demand major metropolises such as Dallas, New York, Chicago and Miami will go bankrupt. In fact, even with 500,000 new apartments When they do come to those areas, data shows that finding a job opportunity there remains a challenge.
Why Central America is on the Rise
The affordability crisis is at the heart of America’s need to move to cheaper markets. According to The Wall Street Journalthe overall cost of living in several Midwestern metro areas is about 8.5% below the U.S. average.
A WJ/Realtor.com Emerging Housing Markets Index for Winter 2026 found that Midwest markets with renowned universities, strong medical infrastructure and manufacturing centers were particularly resilient. Adjusting these characteristics for affordability, median home prices were largely between $240,000 and $400,000, and the cost of living was below national standards.
According to a recent LendingTree study, Americans are paying “hundreds of extra dollars in rent” – about 40% more for one- and two-bedroom apartments – than even five years agowhile wages have not kept pace, putting enormous pressure on renters and triggering a migration to more affordable cities.
The housing industry has responded by bringing thousands of new apartments to the rental market, increasing housing construction by 5.2% monthly to 1.428 million units as of July 2025, while new apartment construction rose more than 50% in two months in mid-2025, according to data from the Commerce Department’s Census Bureau, as cited by Reuters.
Still a chronic shortage of housing
The National Apartment Association and the National Multi-Family Housing Council released a report joint statement on the eve of President Trump’s State of the Union address, in which he cited the need for more housing to alleviate the affordability crisis, saying:
“Neither one speech nor a single federal policy will solve the housing affordability challenges we face. Instead, alleviating the housing shortage will require a sustained commitment to building housing of all kinds, supported by public and private investments, through public-private partnerships, and freed from outdated regulations that slow construction and drive up costs. It also requires the government to focus on what we know works – building more housing – and resist repeating past mistakes.”
Reading the data for smaller investors
It is clear that cheaper, more affordable markets around employment hubs play a vital role for smaller investors looking for stable rental income. A recent report from Bank of America showed that the exodus of residents from expensive areas such as Los Angeles and New York to smaller southern cities is fueling migration abroad, concluding that “affordability and climate remain the two biggest magnets – and the two biggest push factors.”
‘The straw that breaks the camel’s back’
Minneapolis presents a cautionary tale for investors. In the turbulent political climate, cities with high immigrant populations facing deportation actions from ICE could have dire consequences for landowners.
Chris Nebenzahl, vice president of rental research at John Burns Research and Consulting, shared Dive with several families that in some buildings, immigration enforcement could be “the straw that breaks the camel’s back,” especially for owners facing loans originated in 2021 that are maturing due to higher vacancies and lower rents.
Nebenzahl added that the combination of previous supply issues and now a demand shock due to immigration policy is “really leaving some people in the lurch from an occupancy perspective.” Other landlords in Florida and Texas told the outlet they have also seen damaging effects on rentals and occupancy when ICE enforcement intensity is particularly high.
Despite ongoing ICE raids, it is still too early to see how long it will take for rental activity to return to previous levels after enforcement activities in an area cease.
Final thoughts
The US rental market remains very fluid, with the changing economic climate having a pronounced effect on rental activity, especially with the rise of remote working, meaning many people are less likely to stay in an expensive city for a job. There has been a shift towards more affordable, climate-friendly areas.
RentCafé’s list is interesting because it is not documented afterwards, but is largely based on online activities, which is an indicator of future developments. That’s why it’s good to combine RentCafé data with rental growth data to see how interest translates into action.
According to research agency Arbor Realty TrustMinneapolis ended 2025 as the second strongest multi-family rental growth market in the country, with growth of 2% and an average rent of approximately $1,497 per unit.
For small landlords, the game is simple: follow the money. Larger apartment buildings do is being built in a pinch, but not everyone wants to live in a building with hundreds of other people.
As a result, single-family rental properties are in demand in these markets, said National Mortgage Professionalshowing that only 13.7% of single-family homes are occupied by renters – a decade low. Finding available single-family homes and small multi-family homes in these markets should create strong demand.
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