PORTLAND, Maine — The Portland metro area received attention for having among the nation’s fastest-rising rental costs in the past year, in part because the data used for the rankings reflected increased rental rates throughout Cumberland County, including in vacation destinations where seasonal rentals drive up the median price.
Data from the real estate listing and data company Zillow found that among the top 150 metropolitan housing markets where it tracks prices, Greater Portland grew at the second-fastest rate, behind the Jackson, Mississippi, area.
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The data reflects a broader increase in rents across much of the state, rising about 17.4 percent in the Portland market and about 16.23 percent in the Bangor market.
At the metro area level, Greater Portland had the clear edge on other towns for median rental price, but rent increases were higher from May to May in other regions, including Lewiston. But that could be the result of a less robust set of data.
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The metro rent index for Lewiston is based on data from three towns, not including Lewiston. The Portland area index, on the other hand, includes rental pricing information from 36 communities.
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While the ranking carries Portland’s name, the rental index growth Zillow tracks reflects a general boom in rental prices across southern Maine, where rents approaching the summer season are understandably higher, including: Cape Elizabeth, Harpswell, Yarmouth, Scarborough, Freeport and Kittery.
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Cape Elizabeth rents were the fastest-growing, according to Zillow’s town-level data, with a 24.4 percent increase in May from one year ago, to an average of $2,426 a month across all home rentals. Portland rental prices rose about 17.5 percent over the year in May, to an average of $1,634 across the city.
Rents in Bangor, tracked by Zillow, rose by about as much, up 15.4 percent to an average of $1,161 in May over one year ago.