Renters in Atlanta seek high-end amenities, sense of community

Avalon in Alpharetta features high-end apartments above retail shops. JONATHAN PHILLIPS / SPECIAL

The average rent in metro Atlanta is on the rise.

The most expensive rentals are in neighborhoods like Buckhead, Lenox and Lullwater where average costs are between $1,612 and $1,712.

Atlanta area residents seeking lower rents should head to neighborhoods like Chosewood Park, Peoplestown or Lakewood Heights where the average rent of $650 falls well below the Atlanta average of $1,203 per month, according to data from rentcafe.com.

While rental costs have gone up, they haven’t gone up as much as housing prices and rent in Atlanta is still relatively affordable compared to other metro areas.

But for many renters, cost is only part of the equation when seeking a place to live.  Rent (85%),  location (81%) and community environment (49%) are among the top factors that renters look for according to new data from Village Green’s National Renter Profile.

In the Atlanta metro area, 68% of renters say they want a community that fits their lifestyles and 65% say they want a community that feels “homey.”

Local renters also said it is important to them to live in a community where maintenance requests are handled in a timely manner.

Despite the higher cost of renting a luxury apartment, more than half of renters said they would want high-end amenities such as an upgraded kitchen, bathroom and hardwood floors. Many also said they are happy to pay for those upgrades.

Of course, how much renters are willing to pay for high-end rentals varies by generation.

Almost half of millennials (48%) said they would pay more for high-end amenities, while only 28% of baby boomers said the same.

Read more about how Millennials and Baby Boomers are living in the city in the AJC’s five-part series about how age shapes life in Atlanta.