How rent-friendly is Pembroke Pines? It scored high in one area, last in another
Bracing for the first of the month? A new study shows Pembroke Pines might not be a top contender for tenants in the Sunshine State.
The southwest Broward city landed within the top 70th percentile among U.S. cities for the best and worst places to rent in America, according to a report by WalletHub.
The report, released July 7 by the Miami-based personal finance company, compared 182 cities nationwide in two categories that WalletHub says determine “a good living experience”: an area’s quality of life and its rental market and affordability.
What spot did Pembroke Pines snag?
The city ranked 122nd and was dubbed the seventh-best among the 11 Florida cities that made the report.
To size up Pines’ rental market, the categories were broken down into 21 rent-related metrics with varying weights, graded on a 100-point scale and averaged to calculate the score.
The city scored high on quality of life, placing sixth in the 40-point category that weighed the city’s overall satisfaction index, job market, driver and recreation friendliness, safety, weather and quality of public school system as well as tenant-specific factors such as the presence of state bedbug laws.
Where Pines tanked? Rental market and affordability, worth 60 points.
The city’s rental vacancy rate, friendliness of sublet laws, average home square footage, rental affordability, number of severely cost-burdened renters and cost of living all failed to measure up, meaning Pines came in last — No. 182 — in the category.
Pembroke Pines’ total score was 45.67.
Previous studies show it’s not the first time local tenants have been warned.
In April, the city ranked No. 174 in WalletHub’s roundup of cities with the most affordable rent. It also ranked No. 6 on the Journal of Consumer Research’s November list of most “house-poor” cities in America.
If these statistics have you scrambling to Zillow’s rental listings, rest assured that you’ve got options.
Six Florida cities outdid Pembroke Pines on WalletHub’s list, with one no more than an hour drive’s south: Tampa (29), Orlando (47), Jacksonville (76), St. Petersburg (99), Tallahassee (115) and Miami (121).
Which Sunshine State municipalities should you avoid in your search? Port St. Lucie (141), Cape Coral (146), Fort Lauderdale (162) and Hialeah (167).
And if you’re looking for the best bang for your buck, the Southwest may be calling your name.
Three Arizona cities topped WalletHub’s report: Scottsdale, Gilbert and Chandler. Overland Park, Kansas, and Columbia, Maryland, rounded out the top five.
