Dallas Renters Catch a Break as Competition Eases, but Housing Crisis Still Looms

The government may be shut down and the economy may be flatlining, but according to the numbers, finding an apartment in Dallas was a little bit easier this summer. It’s reassuring to know that rental opportunities are expanding as the likelihood of homeownership outside of the Middle of Nowhere, Texas, wanes. 

A new study from RentCafe, ranking competitive rental markets, found that Dallas renters had an easier time during peak rental season, typically the summer, in 2025. They say it’s because apartments took longer to fill, there were fewer applicants, and more units became available. 

Maybe more units are becoming available because everyone is surging to the ever-thriving burbs, or taking a page out of Fort Worth Chief Police Eddie Garcia’s playbook and backstabbing Big D for new digs in Cowtown. Perhaps they’re even fleeing south to keep Austin weird. 

The city’s Rental Competitive Index, as set by RentCafe and determined by apartment occupancy rate, average total days vacant, prospective renters per vacant unit, renewal lease rate and share of new apartments completed during the same timeframe compared to the existing overall supply at the start of Q2 2024, decreased three points, from 73.5 to 70.9. Dallas came in 51st out of 66 of the most competitive rental markets. 

During the 2025 peak rental season, apartments spent an average of 40 days vacant on the market. Roughly 91.6% of all units were occupied and an average of 7 renters were vying for the same unit. 

Houston and Fort Worth both have more competitive markets than Dallas, but locking down a crib in San Antonio and Austin is easier. 

Competition decreases may be caused by a mass exodus, but it certainly isn’t due to an increase in the construction of units. The city has long battled an affordable housing crisis that is propelled by restrictive zoning ordinances and community pushback that has historically derailed construction plans. A prior report from RentCafe found that the share of new units on the Dallas rental market slowed to just 0.61% of all available units. 

But maybe next year will be different, and peak rental seasons to come are even better as the city makes room for recently approved small-scale apartment complexes. Lord knows the longtime residents of Bishop Arts, or the Turtle Creek residents who have successfully stalled the construction of view-blocking high-rises on multiple occasions, rejoice in the new density dealings.