The cost to rent is coming down faster in some areas of the U.S. than others.

Overall, rent affordability is improving thanks to a combination of factors, said Daryl Fairweather, chief economist at Redfin. One is, there's more supply.

"There are more apartments for rent now because there was a bit of a construction boom during the pandemic," she said.

With a higher rental inventory, landlords and property managers must lower their rent prices in order to compete with one another, Fairweather said.

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Renters are also earning more, giving them more buying power.

In 2024, the median income among renters was $54,752, up 5.3% from $52,019 in 2023 and 35.2% higher from $40,505 in 2019, according to a recent report by Redfin.

Even so, that median income is still 14% below -- or about $8,928 under -- the amount tenants need to comfortably afford rent, the report found.

"The majority of renters are rent burdened," said Fairweather, meaning tenants are spending more of their income than they should be on rental housing.

The Joint Center for Housing Studies at Harvard University defines a renter as "cost burdened" if they spend more than 30% of their income on rent and utilities.