With the demand for apartments continuing to rise, Philadelphia metro area rental rates — and those nationwide — are way up. Michaelle Bond examined the trend for The Philadelphia Inquirer.

Rents reached two-year highs in July in the Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington metropolitan area. Rates are up 3.5 percent compared with the same time last year.

Specifically, Philadelphia rents rose six percent over the same period. The median rent in the Philadelphia metro area ranges from $1,600 to $1,700 per month.

And while the rate of monthly growth in rent prices has slowed this summer, it is expected that rents are still going to be climbing at a faster-than-normal pace for the balance of 2021.

Vacancy rates are also down, having peaked in June 2020 at 6.6 percent in the Metro area and 9 percent in Philadelphia. In August, the rates were at 3.3 and 4.2 percent, respectively.

“With the economy continuing to reopen, employees receiving more long-term guidance on remote work, and as students find their way back to college campuses, the rental market is picking back up,” said Nicole Bachaud, economic data analyst at Zillow.

Read more about the Philadelphia metro area rental rates in The Philadelphia Inquirer.