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Philly rents up overall, but some neighborhood rates may surprise you

Rents are up 10 percent in Kensington and the dubiously named "Avenue of the Arts North" (think: Temple and North Broad).

A bedroom and living room in a two-bedroom, two-bathroom luxury apartment at 1919 Market St. in Philadelphia.
A bedroom and living room in a two-bedroom, two-bathroom luxury apartment at 1919 Market St. in Philadelphia.Read moreJESSICA GRIFFIN
    by Shannon Rooney, Real Estate Blogger
    Published 

It's pretty well established that Philadelphia is an expensive place to rent. According to the most recent quarterly rent reports at Zumper, the area figures make Philadelphia the 14th most expensive rental market in the United States. What actually may surprise is where the rental increases are happening within Philadelphia.

The same report offered insights to neighborhood rental prices and pointed to Kensington and the dubiously named "Avenue of the Arts North" (think: Temple and North Broad) as home to some of the fastest growing rents this year. Both are up more than 10 percent, with Kensington rents hovering around $1,350 and Avenue of the Arts North prices at about $1,600 for one-bedroom places. Also surprising? Rents were down about 7 percent in tony Washington Square and Center City West.

Overall, the report found one-bedrooms in Philadelphia were up 0.7 percent to a median rent of $1,400, while two-bedrooms were up 0.6 percent to $1,600. It's cold comfort, but rents in the most expensive market in the United States – San Francisco – are more double that at $3,420.

Check out the whole report, including neighborhoods where you can still find a steal (South Philly and Grays Ferry, for sure).