LA rental prices sat tight in September

Renters in Los Angeles face some of the most unaffordable monthly payments in the nation, but in 2018, the steady climb of prices has slowed to a crawl.

The median rent for a one-bedroom apartment stood at $1,370 in September, according to a new report from Apartment List. The price of a two-bedroom rental was $1,760.

That represents just a 1.1 percent increase over prices at the same time last year, and rents are flat since August.

Apartment List bases its price calculations on census data, so these numbers give a good sense of what average Angelenos are paying right now. But someone looking for a new place may find much higher prices—particularly if they're shopping online.

According to CoStar, which calculates average rents based on available listings, the typical one-bedroom in LA now goes for $1,690. A two-bedroom commands $2,150.

Even using those larger figures, rental prices for a two-bedroom are only up 2.4 percent over last year.

The rental market may be cooling off a bit after the addition of tens of thousands of new housing units in the past few years. Prices may also have risen to a point where many tenants are no longer willing or able to pay, UCLA adjunct professor of real estate and accounting Eric Sussman told Curbed at the beginning of the year.

Sussman predicted at that time that prices could level off or even decrease in 2018, after years of steady growth. So far prices haven't fallen, but for frustrated renters, no gain is probably a start.

• Finally, a bit of good news about the cost of renting in LA [Curbed LA]
• Report: 58% of LA tenants are spending too much on rent [Curbed LA]
• Planning director says LA could hit the mayor’s housing goal two years early [Curbed LA]