There are quite a lot of causes people transfer to Seattle from across the nation. Spacious residences isn’t one among them.
Seattle residences constructed up to now 10 years have a mean measurement of 649 sq. toes, based on a brand new report from RentCafe.com, an condo search web site. Among the many 100 U.S. cities with the biggest variety of rental models, Seattle ranks final for common condo measurement.
Seattle residences was once a little bit greater. Ten years in the past, they averaged 706 sq. toes. However as the price of housing rose, builders responded by constructing smaller residences, together with a slew of micro-units, which may be as tiny as 150 sq. toes. Many renters in Seattle appear prepared to sacrifice residing area to decrease the lease.
In response to the report, new development in Seattle more and more targeted on studios and one-bedrooms, which have additionally shrunk in measurement over the previous decade. For instance, the report reveals that the typical studio in Seattle is now 371 sq. toes, down from 442 sq. toes one decade earlier.
Flats with two or extra bedrooms now make up solely 19% of latest stock, down from 24% 10 years in the past. However not like studios and one-bedrooms, the bigger residences have grown barely.
Tiny residences may present an answer to counter the excessive price of housing in Seattle for some — particularly, single individuals. And in reality, single persons are a big and rising phase of town’s inhabitants. In my earlier column, I reported on new census knowledge exhibiting that for the primary time, half of all males in Seattle have been never-married singles.
Small residences don’t work almost as effectively for {couples} or households, who may discover themselves having to look outdoors of Seattle for housing.
Among the many 100 cities within the report, just one different had a mean new condo measurement under 700 sq. toes: Portland, the place the micro-unit development has additionally taken maintain. The Rose Metropolis ranked second with a mean of 668 sq. toes.
Two New York Metropolis boroughs take the third and fourth spots, with Queens at 702 sq. toes adopted by Brooklyn at 708 sq. toes. San Francisco rounds out the highest 5 cities for smallest new residences, averaging 716 sq. toes.
Nationally, there was a latest uptick in common condo measurement since 2022. Earlier than that, sq. footage was on a reasonably regular downward slide.
Among the many 100 cities within the report, 85 have seen residences shrink over the previous 10 years. Detroit had probably the most dramatic lower, with the typical condo down by 184 sq. toes, or 25%. In response to the report, Detroit is experiencing an analogous development as Seattle and Portland towards development of a lot smaller residences.
A lot of the 15 cities the place models have elevated in measurement are smaller and fewer densely populated, however there are some exceptions. In San Francisco, the typical unit grew 59 sq. toes, and the typical condo measurement additionally elevated within the New York Metropolis boroughs of Manhattan, Brooklyn and Queens.
So the place can you reside if you’d like room to stretch out?
The ten cities with the biggest common condo measurement are positioned within the Sunbelt. Tallahassee ranked No. 1, with a mean of 1,130 sq. toes, 74% bigger than Seattle. One other Florida metropolis, Gainesville, ranked second at 1,122 sq. toes, adopted by Baton Rouge, La., at 1,055 sq. toes.
The condo measurement and lease knowledge are present as of February 2025. The info comes from Yardi Matrix, a RentCafe.com sister firm specializing in condo market data for greater than 177 U.S. markets.
