Rents are up 4.1% around San Diego County, with the city itself seeing a spike of 9.3% compared to last year, according to a survey released Tuesday by the Southern California Rental Housing Association (SCRHA).
The increase in rents comes at the same time as inventory continues to be tight across the region. This follows a decrease in average rents by more than 7% between 2023 and 2024.
"SCRHA's long-standing survey helps housing providers navigate changing market conditions with reliable, consistent data," said Alan Pentico, executive director of the association. "While rents have risen modestly, they remain below 2023 levels in many areas, and the city's progress on new housing is an encouraging sign."
San Diego permitted 8,500 new homes in 2024, a major increase from prior years. The 2025 survey also recorded a continued decrease in vacancy rates. Region-wide availability dropped to 3.6%, down from 6.36% in 2024. In the city of San Diego, the vacancy rate decreased to 3.12%, compared to 4.22% last year.
"Our survey confirms what many housing providers have been experiencing firsthand: renewed demand and lower vacancies, but also cautious optimism as new housing development begins to catch up," Pentico said.
SCRHA releases the rental pricing data only after it is at least three months old to "avoid influencing real-time pricing, in compliance with federal antitrust guidelines," a statement from the association read. The data revealed in Tuesday's survey is from the point-in-time survey conducted in March 2025 with rental property owners and managers.
The SCRHA has been tracking rental and vacancy rate data in the San Diego region since the 1950s.
