Mountain View has become the most expensive city in Silicon Valley for renters, with rental rates surpassing previous records. According to data from CBRE cited by the San Francisco Business Times, some new luxury one-bedroom apartments are leasing for around $5.75 per square foot, compared to the earlier peak of $5.50 per square foot. This means that a typical new one-bedroom unit, which averages about 735 square feet nationally, would cost roughly $4,200 per month.
The surge in rental prices comes as artificial intelligence companies increase their presence in the Bay Area. OpenAI is reportedly searching for up to 500,000 square feet of office space in Silicon Valley, with Mountain View identified as a leading option by real estate sources referenced by the Business Times. The rise in AI-related hiring has led to higher demand for housing; job postings for AI roles in Santa Clara County have risen from 3 percent to 8 percent over the past three years.
In comparison, San Francisco has seen apartment rents climb by an average of 6 percent over the past year—more than twice New York City’s 2.5 percent increase, according to CoStar data cited by the New York Times. Nationally, rent growth has slowed to just 0.5 percent year-over-year, while vacancy rates have increased to 4.4 percent and net absorption has dropped to its lowest third-quarter levels since 2022 based on CBRE statistics.
Last month, Mountain View’s City Council turned down a proposal from Greystar Real Estate Partners that aimed to expand housing supply in the area. The company sought approval to extend its construction timeline from two years to eight years for a planned mixed-use development at a former J.P. Morgan Chase branch located at 749 West El Camino Real. The council rejected this request.
The City of Mountain View is required under state guidelines to plan for 11,135 new housing units by 2031.
“— Chris Malone Méndez”
