Not so long ago, Sarasota’s rental market seemed to have only one setting: up. In 2022, annual rent increases reached 40 percent in Sarasota County and 42 percent in Manatee. Across the North Port–Sarasota–Bradenton metro, rents had climbed 47 percent since March 2020—the fastest increase among the country’s 100 largest metropolitan areas.

For renters watching their renewal notices, the question was how much higher prices could possibly go—and whether moving outside the region made more sense.

Four years later, Sarasota is among the nation’s best cities for renters—a ranking that may have sounded like a punch line back then. RentCafe’s annual ranking places the city ninth among 150 cities evaluated nationwide. That’s down from second place in 2025, but still enough to keep Sarasota in the top 10. Bradenton, meanwhile, climbed 15 spots to No. 37, returning to the top 50 after finishing 52nd last year.

The scores combine housing and cost of living, economic conditions and quality of life, weighted at 40, 35 and 25 percent, respectively. Sarasota places ninth in the housing category and 18th for quality of life; Bradenton ranks 12th for housing.

Apartment size, availability, new construction and high-end rentals all count toward the housing score, so a high placement doesn’t simply mean low rents. 

The contrast is striking. Our 2022 reporting documented residents watching rent increases swallow their savings, young workers depending on roommates and employers struggling to recruit people who could afford to live here. 

Since then, the region has continued making room for more residents. As we wrote in August, the metro ranked eighth among the country’s 250 largest housing markets for multifamily permits per capita between June 2025 and June 2026, with 53.3 units authorized per 10,000 residents. It also ranked fifth for single-family permits per capita—the only Florida market in the top 10 of both lists.

In south Sarasota County, Woodfield Development’s 355-unit Sarasota Square Apartments secured construction financing in June as part of the former mall’s redevelopment.

Downtown, American Land Ventures’ proposed Fruitville Gateway would add 274 apartments. A separate proposal, known as 1899 Fruitville Road, calls for 324 apartments in Gillespie Park. 

In the Rosemary District, Bayside’s first phase is bringing 254 rental apartments at 850 Cocoanut Ave. Its second phase, Bayside North, is planned with another 96 rental residences at 1250 10th St.

In Manatee County, Kolter broke ground last fall on Alton Sarasota, a 256-unit community on Prospect Road. Nearby, Milhaus broke ground earlier this year on Tallevast, a 231-unit development. Together, these projects would add nearly 1,800 rental apartments.

More housing can give renters more choices and put pressure on landlords to compete. Sarasota’s apartment occupancy rate in RentCafe’s study was 89.6 percent, leaving roughly one in 10 units unoccupied. Its apartment data covers buildings with at least 50 units. 

The competition is also showing up in the perks offered to get leases signed. Recently, we reported that Sarasota was among five U.S. cities with the most rent concessions in 2026. Apartments.com’s analysis found that 81.8 percent of multifamily properties in its Sarasota market offered an incentive. Among properties offering concessions, 46.8 percent advertised two months of free rent—the most common offer locally. 

Those deals offer another measure of how far the market has shifted from the days of take-it-or-leave-it renewal notices. The same analysis reported more than 4,500 additional rental units in the Sarasota market compared with a year earlier, an increase of more than 10 percent. 

But a favorable ranking doesn’t mean the affordability crisis is over. The new findings offer a different view of Sarasota from the frantic pandemic years. Whether that translates into relief at the kitchen table will depend on the number on the next lease.