This lakefront Midwestern city has one of the most competitive rental markets in the US — and it isn't Chicago

New York Post

02-05-2025

Milwaukee, Wisconsin may be best known for its beer and brats, but these days it's serving up something else in high demand: apartments.
Once a sleeper city on the Lake Michigan shoreline, it's now one of the nation's most competitive rental markets.
According to RentCafe, roughly 94% of rental units in Wisconsin's largest city were occupied at the start of 2025. With an average of eight prospective tenants competing for each apartment and 70.1% of renters opting to renew their leases, demand is far outpacing supply.
8 Milwaukee has a 94% occupancy and an average of eight renters vying for each apartment, according to RentCafe.
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'You might not think of Milwaukee as being hot, hot, hot, but that is what its housing market is right now,' Suzanne Powers, broker-owner of Powers Realty Group, Inc. told the Wall Street Journal.
Driving the rental frenzy is a confluence of factors — steady job growth from companies like Northwestern Mutual and Rockwell Automation, a cost of living that remains relatively affordable and a lifestyle that offers big-city culture without big-city chaos.
8 Once known mainly for beer and cheese, the city is gaining recognition for its cultural vibrancy, economic opportunity and livability, with major employers like Northwestern Mutual and Rockwell Automation, and a relatively low cost of living.
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Still, these perks come with growing pains.
'The lack of new supply is what's making Milwaukee a hot rental market,' Chad Venne, real-estate program director at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, told the Journal.
Construction of single-family homes and condominiums stalled during the 2008 financial crisis and never returned to previous levels, Venne said.
While apartment development picked up between 2013 and 2019, today's high interest rates and building costs have curbed new projects, especially for middle-income renters.
8 Millennials, Gen Z, and seniors alike are competing for apartments, with rent averaging $1,541 as of February 2025 — up 29% since 2020.
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8 Northwestern Mutual in Milwaukee.
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'No one can figure out how to build for the people in the middle, who represent the largest percentage of the population,' he added.
As a result, would-be buyers are remaining renters, keeping the pressure on an already tight market. The average rent in Milwaukee reached $1,541 in February 2025, a nearly 30% increase from five years earlier. The average unit size is 849 square feet.
Nearly 60% of households in Milwaukee are renter-occupied, with only 42% owning their homes, according to RentCafe. But it's not just young professionals fueling demand.
8 The high renter-occupied rate is driven by a shortage of for-sale homes due to a post-2008 development slump and today's high construction costs, which limit new housing to either high-end or subsidized units.
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'It's a proverbial traffic jam of demographics,' Robert Monnat, senior partner at Milwaukee-based Mandel Group, Inc. told the Journal.
Millennials priced out of homeownership, Gen Z newcomers entering the market and retirees downsizing while keeping a foothold in the city are all vying for the same limited stock.
Developers catering to high-end renters are seeing strong returns.
'Milwaukee is home to four of the top five towers in the Midwest, excluding Chicago, with the highest asking rents per square foot,' Sheldon Oppermann, CFO and general counsel at New Land Enterprises, said.
8 About 58% of households are renter-occupied.
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Asking rents in top-tier buildings now hover between $3.50 and $3.90 per square foot, he said.
Among the most sought-after buildings downtown is 7Seventy7, a 34-story tower developed by Northwestern Mutual with luxury apartments spanning 24 floors.
Another is Ascent, a 25-story structure certified as the world's tallest timber building when it opened in 2022.
8 The 7Seventy7 apartment complex in Milwaukee.
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8 Ascent offers amenities from rooftop bars to smart home features.
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Renters are also drawn to the Historic Third Ward, a former warehouse district now buzzing with entertainment and dining.
The amenities arms race is on full display. At Ascent, a penthouse unit offers timber interiors, smart technology and panoramic views of Lake Michigan. Residents share a retractable glass-walled pool and a rooftop bar. At 7Seventy7, offerings include a golf simulator, a Peloton studio, a dog run and a pet spa.
Yet for all its momentum, the city's housing future remains uncertain.
'It will take several years for all of this to unwind — mortgage pricing, market value reset of existing homes for sale,' Monnat said, adding, 'I believe that the transition will be orderly, given that we're not overbuilt.'