Fort Lauderdale has the hottest rental market in the state, even above Miami, according to a new report.
According to Rent Café, an apartment search website, Fort Lauderdale had the most renter engagement in the state for the first half of 2025, jumping 41 spots compared to last year and coming in at 20th for the nation.
That’s based on availability of apartments, views on listings and apartments saved as favorites on the website. It does not take affordability into consideration.
Miami is ranked 134 in the nation and 8th in the state behind other cities like Orlando, Tampa and Tallahassee.
So what makes Fort Lauderdale so hot?
“One of the reasons why Fort Lauderdale has done so well is because it has been underdeveloped for years,” Doug Ressler, senior analyst for RentCafe, said.
Ressler, who is also a business intelligence manager with Yardi Matrix, the company compiling data for the study, said the bulk of the development appears to be in the south end of Fort Lauderdale towards the Miami border.
“We are in the beginning of what Miami went through 10 years back, 15 years back, with all of the new construction that we saw,” Alexander Tegov said.
Tegov is the managing broker with Prestige Waterfront Realty in Fort Lauderdale’s Galt Mile, a stretch of high-rise oceanfront buildings between Oakland Park Boulevard and Lauderdale-by-the-Sea.
“I think people are looking for value, size and a more laid back lifestyle. I believe that Fort Lauderdale being the Venice of America, and not as densely populated as Miami, has a lot more to offer and it’s been under looked for a long time. So people are finally discovering this hidden gem like the Galt Mile,” Tegov said.
Tegov said clients are flocking to Fort Lauderdale for the bigger properties, waterfront views and less traffic.
Though that could be changing in the next decade.
Growth could spell trouble in the future
“Inevitably I would say probably in the next five to 10 years we’re going to see a great increase in population in Fort Lauderdale, especially once people realize that both on the purchase and rental side it’s a very undervalued market,” Tegov said.
It’s growth that comes with some concerns.
“I used to rent my house out for less than what I’m paying for a one bedroom unit in downtown Fort Lauderdale,” Bonnie Mawby said.
Mawby was born and raised in Fort Lauderdale. She said while she’s glad the growth is helping the tourism and hospitality industry, she’s worried the traffic will continue to get worse.
“No, I don’t want it to get bigger,” Mawby said. “As long as it doesn’t get any worse I can live with it.”
According to the report, Washington, D.C. is the number one sought-after rental market in the country followed by Kansas City, MO and Cincinnati, OH.
