Zillow introduces new rental index for major metros

Seattle-based Zillow launched a rental index similar to
its “Zestimates” for single-family home values.

The Zillow Rent Index tracks recent rental listings
prices and weighs homes’ various attributes, like prior sale
prices, tax assessment data and location, in constructing
the index.

The new index shows that the estimated January 2012
median rent nationwide settled at $1,218, which was down a
slight 0.3 percent from December 2011, but up 4.6 percent
from January 2011.

A majority (69.2 percent) of the metros the index tracks
showed year-over-year median rent increases from January
2011 to January 2012.

“The flourishing rental market is the silver lining to
the nation’s housing downturn,” said Stan Humphries, Zillow
chief economist. “We haven’t had a good way to quantify what
is happening with rental rates until now, and the inaugural
Zillow Rent Index shows us a healthy and growing rental
market across the majority of the country, even as home
values continue to fall . . .”