Downtown Phoenix 85004Available now$1,695per month85003, 85004, 85006 · peak month August
Downtown Phoenix rental market
The highest rent per square foot and the highest vacancy, because new supply and concessions set the price here rather than demand.
Downtown Phoenix, 85003Downtown Phoenix on the numbers
Sample figures drawn from the Keyfinder managed portfolio over the rolling twelve months to August 2026.
Compare all six submarkets- $1,975Median asking rent, 2 bed
- $2.34Rent per square foot
- 21 daysAverage days on market
- 7.3%Vacancy rate
- 71%Renter households
- 18 monthsAverage tenancy
- +1.4%Rent, year on year
- AugustPeak listing month
Reading this submarket
Downtown is the only submarket we manage where institutional supply sets the price. When two or three mid-rise buildings deliver in the same quarter, their lease-up concessions become the effective market rent for every one bedroom within a mile, whether the owner likes it or not.
That produces the pattern in the numbers: the highest rent per square foot on the list, paired with the highest vacancy rate and the softest year on year growth. Small square footage at a high per-foot rate still lands at a moderate monthly rent, which is why a 742 sq ft condo prices near a 1,000 sq ft suburban apartment.
The historic districts behave differently. Roosevelt, Garfield and Willo bungalows and casitas have almost no new supply, lease quickly, and hold rent through the soft months because nothing replaces them.
If you own here
You are competing against institutional lease-up concessions, not against other individual owners. Match the market on move-in terms or price under it, because a small owner cannot win a concession war.
Owner servicesIf you are renting here
Ask what the renewal rent looks like before you take two months free. A concession-heavy first year often becomes a large jump at month thirteen.
Tenant hubTiming
Peak month is August and the softest is November. Concessions: common. new-build lease-ups routinely offer one to two months free.
The Phoenix rent cycleSchool, transit and amenity context
The things applicants actually shop on, beyond the rent figure.
Housing stock
Mid-rise condos and apartments from 2005 onward, plus historic district bungalows and casitas in Roosevelt, Garfield and Willo
Schools
Phoenix Elementary District 1 and Phoenix Union High School District, with several charter and magnet options. Most downtown households are not school-driven.
Transit and getting around
The strongest transit in the metro. Valley Metro light rail runs Central Avenue with platforms at Roosevelt, Van Buren and Jefferson, plus the downtown bus grid and a dense bike lane network.
Amenities nearby
Roosevelt Row galleries, Hance Park, the Japanese Friendship Garden, ASU Downtown, the arena and ballpark, and grocery at the Fry's on Jefferson.
What we manage in Downtown Phoenix
Current and recent listings from our own managed portfolio in this submarket.
Search everythingDowntown Phoenix 85004Available now$1,695per month
Downtown Phoenix 85003Application pending$1,345per month410 W Willetta St Casita
1 bed1 bath528 sq ftCasitaView this rentalThe other five submarkets
Same metrics, different clocks.
Full comparison table