New report finds Arlington has 5th-highest median rent in country

ARLINGTON, Va. (DC News Now) — When you think of pricey cities, New York, Los Angeles, Boston, and D.C. likely come to mind.

But a new report is out — and there is tough news for families in Northern Virginia.

According to apartmentrent.com, Arlington has the fifth-highest median rent among the top 100 cities in the country, as of June 2025, which is over $2,600. Only four California cities are higher on the list.

“The Pentagon’s right here, Amazon HQ2 is right here, there’s a lot in the neighborhood,” said one Arlington resident, who said both “yes and no” when asked if he’s surprised by the findings of the latest report.

Arlington’s rent has risen 2.7% over the last 12 months, roughly on pace with Virginia as a whole, which has increased by 2.6%. Both are above the US average of -0.7%.

Takis Karantonis, the Arlington County Board Chair, told DC News Now that more work needs to be done to counter the trend.

“It is a supply-starved market,” he said. “The answer is: supply.”

Karantonis said 63% of Arlingtonians are renters, and times of economic uncertainty make building new housing quickly tough.

“We’re investing a lot of money and a lot of policy assets into trying to rebalance the housing market,” he said.

Short-term, he said, that looks like housing grants and rental support. In the long term, he’s hoping the county’s Missing Middle plan is an answer. However, that is stuck in the courts, as it has been the source of some public opposition.

“That [would allow] places where, for example, you could only build a single household home, now you can build more households,” Karantonis said.

Will Wyatt, a DC-area broker, cautioned that the trend may not reverse soon, citing the impact of Amazon’s HQ2 and a secondary market lagging behind private sector rentals.

“Overall, there is a squeeze,” he said.