PORT ST. LUCIE, Fla. — Everywhere you look in Port St. Lucie, apartments are popping up.
This means renters have options, however those WPTV reporter Tyler Hatfield spoke with on Thursday said the cost of renting still hurts.
Port St. Lucie had the highest percent increase of rental units or apartments in all of Florida in 2024, according to a recent analysis byRentCafe.
Kelley Decowski is a realtor on the Treasure coast who has followed Port St. Lucie’s growth and she told WPTV she’s not surprised.
“If you drive through pretty much any area of St. Lucie County, you're going to see apartment communities going up,” she said.
According to the study, Port St. Lucie saw a 12.9% increase in new rental units.
But while there may be more inventory, renters like Madison Restrepo, said finding a place in the city—on a budget— can be tricky.
“It was difficult, because everywhere is pretty expensive,” she said.
Restrepo said it hasn’t always been this way.
“There’s a lot of people coming. It used to not be expensive, it was affordable at one point,” said Restrepo.
According to apartments.com, the city’s average monthly rent is close to $1,800, 16% higher than the national average.
But with more places to rent, why prices are not more affordable?
Decowski said the market is still competitive and residents need to be patient.
“The laws of economics will eventually apply where we will have enough supply that the prices should start to come down,” said Decowski. “But it's just going to take a little bit of time.”