The Most Expensive ZIP Codes in America in 2019

It’s time for our annual tradition here at RentCafe — ranking the country’s most expensive ZIP Codes for renters. As summer has come to an end and with it the peak renting season, there’s no better time to dream about the alluring, most exclusive places where we all wish we could, but only a lucky few can afford to live. To find these locations, we ranked ZIP Codes with the most expensive rents in more than 130 major U.S. markets using Yardi Matrix data.

New York ZIP Code 10282 holds no. 1 spot and breaks $6,000 mark

The most-coveted locations for high-paying jobs and endless opportunities, New York City and California grab the most spots in the top 50 as priciest places to live in the U.S. Out of the 50 most expensive ZIP Codes, 28 are in New York City, with 26 in Manhattan and one each in Queens and Brooklyn. The ranking is completed by 18 California ZIP codes and 4 ZIP codes from Boston. Here’s the complete list:

Top 50 Most Expensive ZIP Codes for Renters in 2019

Table by RentCafe.com

Manhattan ZIP Code 10282 in Battery Park City not only keeps its number one spot as most expensive in the nation since last year, but it also climbs well above $6,000, with apartment rents at $6,211 per month on average. The river-side neighborhood is seeing a tremendous increase in demand after getting a slew of high-end restaurants and big-name luxury retailers in the past few years.

Battery Park City is followed by ZIP Code 10013 covering the Tribeca and SoHo neighborhoods, another prime location in lower Manhattan, highly sought-after by those working in the Financial District and not only. Despite a 0.8% decrease in rent since last year, it hasn’t budged from second place with an average monthly rent of $5,327. In third place nationwide is another Manhattan ZIP, 10023 in Upper West Side, where the price of enjoying Central Park views is upwards of $5,000 per month.

Los Angeles’ 90024 is the most expensive ZIP in sunny California

With 18 ZIP Codes across Los Angeles, San Francisco, Corte Madera, Redwood City, Culver City, Menlo Park, San Mateo, Mountain View, Marina Del Rey, Santa Monica, Cupertino and Sunnyvale, California apartments aren’t too far behind those in New York. In fact, among the top 10 most expensive ZIP Codes 3 alone are in California, split between two in LA and one in SF.

The most expensive ZIP Code outside of NYC is LA’s Westwood 90024, ranked fourth with an average rent of $4,944. In fifth place nationwide is Los Angeles ZIP Code 90048, covering parts of West Hollywood and Beverly Grove. It went up seven places compared to last year, seeing a 3.7% increase in average rent, reaching $4,896 per month. Meanwhile, in San Francisco, 94105 is the highest-priced ZIP Code for renting, ranking sixth nationally. The area covering East Cut/Rincon Hill has an average apartment rent of $4,858 per month.

There are many great cities in the country — Seattle, Austin, Miami — but Boston is the only city outside of California and New York to make the top 50 list, with four ZIP Codes. The priciest rents are in 02210 in Boston’s Seaport District/West Broadway area, with an average apartment rent above $4,000, ranked 32 in the country. Boston also ranks 36, 39 and 40 with ZIP Codes 02111, 02116, and 02114, respectively.

The most expensive ZIP Codes in America by region

Below you can find the most expensive ZIP Codes in each U.S. region. Overall, the most expensive regions are none other than the Northeast and California, followed by Pacific Northwest, Mid Atlantic, Midwest, and Southeast regions.

Five cities dominate the Pacific Northwest, boasting the most expensive ZIP Codes: Bellevue, Seattle, Issaquah, Mercer Island and Redmond WA.

In the Mid-Atlantic area, the most expensive ZIP Codes can be found in: Washington, DC; Arlington, VA; Potomac, MD; Mc Lean, VA; Bethesda, MD and Chevy Chase, MD.

The Southeast’s most expensive ZIP Codes are in Miami, FL; Fort Lauderdale, FL; Alpharetta, GA and Boca Raton, FL, while the Midwest is represented by Chicago, IL and Minneapolis, MN.

50 ZIP Codes with average rent under $600

As nice as living in Manhattan or somewhere close to the beach in California may sound, not all of us can afford it. However, there are other options that offer inexpensive living throughout the U.S. The ZIP Code with the smallest average rent is in Wichita, 67213, with $423. It is followed by Memphis ZIP Code 38106 with an average rent of $471. On the list, in 16th place is Saint Louis ZIP Code 63137 with an average rent of $548. Another large city ZIP Code, in 38th place, is 48234 in Detroit, where rent averaged out at $585. There are also 10 Ohio ZIP Codes spread across Toledo, Girard, Youngstown, Canfield, Warren and Dayton, which all have apartment rents in the $500s. Kansas has 9 ZIP Codes covering the Wichita and Hutchinson areas, with average rent ranging between $423 and $581. Tennessee has 8 ZIP Codes in the top, in Memphis, Louisville and Maryville, with apartments under $600.

Making the top 20 on our list of cities with the most ZIP Codes where rent averages under $600 are also: Decatur, AL; Jacksonville, AR; Clio, MI; Huntsville, AL; West Memphis, AR and Fort Wayne, IN.

Here’s the list of ZIP Codes with an average rent below $600 per month:

ZIP CODES WITH RENTS BELOW $600 IN 2019

Look up the most expensive ZIP Codes for renters in your state: 

Methodology

• This study uses the actual rent charged in apartment buildings with 50 or more rental units, located in over 130 U.S. markets, totaling approximately 15 million apartment units.
• ZIP Codes with less than 200 rental units and less than 3 rental properties were not included in the study.
• Average rent price data was provided by Yardi Matrix, an apartment market intelligence source and RentCafe’s sister company that researches and reports on large-scale multifamily properties of 50+ units across 130+ markets in the United States.
• The average rent prices are as of July 2019.
• Rent data was provided by our sister company Yardi Matrix, a business development and asset management tool for brokers, sponsors, banks and equity sources underwriting investments in the multifamily, office, industrial and self-storage sectors.