El Paso County, CO Rent Prices by Neighborhood

Where Rents Stand Right Now

The median rent in El Paso County sits at $1,777 per month as of mid-2026, per Zillow data. That headline number tells only part of the story. At the multifamily level, the Colorado Springs market averaged $1,448 per month in Q3 2025, with occupancy at 90.7%. The gap between those two figures reflects a mix of property types and submarkets, with single-family rentals pulling the Zillow median upward.

The direction right now: flat-to-softening, but not collapsing. Home prices fell 5.2% in 2025, and the full-year median sale price settled around $469,350. Rents have not cratered alongside prices, which is the more important number for landlords and renters alike. Occupancy at 90.7% is healthy enough to limit aggressive landlord concessions while still giving renters some negotiating room that did not exist in 2021 and 2022.

Three forces explain the current equilibrium. Employment grew to about 350,000 jobs in 2024, up from 346,000 the prior year. The military installations anchoring the county (Fort Carson, Peterson Space Force Base, Schriever Space Force Base, and the U.S. Air Force Academy) provide a steady base of renters on Basic Allowance for Housing that does not fluctuate with the local job market. And new construction is slowing: fewer multifamily units are under construction than in recent years, which removes one of the main downward pressures on rents.

Neighborhood and Submarket Breakdown

The brief data available covers the upper tier most clearly.

Briargate posted a median home sale price of $545,000 in February 2025, up 9% year over year, with homes averaging 47 days on market and selling about 1% below asking. Rents in this submarket track higher-income tenants and military officers. Investors here should budget for longer lease-up periods but can target a more creditworthy renter pool.

Broadmoor reached $528,000 in median home price, up 20% year over year, with one to two months on market. This is the premium tier. Single-family rentals here are likely to carry rents well above the county median of $1,777, though the limited liquidity and longer hold periods make it a higher-risk submarket for investors who need quick repositioning.

At the workforce-housing end, the market tells a different story. There is a chronic shortage of homes priced under $300,000 in Colorado Springs. Renters priced out of ownership at this tier stay in the rental market longer, keeping demand steady for affordable units. Housing costs in the county have risen 82.6% over the last decade while wage growth has lagged, which means the renters in workforce housing are not converting to buyers anytime soon.

Affordability: What the Numbers Say

El Paso County's average weekly wage was $1,369 in Q1 2025, which translates to about $5,943 per month in gross income. At the county's median rent of $1,777 per month, renters in this market spend roughly 30% of gross income on rent. That places the median renter right at the traditional affordability threshold, with no cushion.

For renters earning at or below the county average wage, market-rate rent is already a stretch. The multifamily average of $1,448 per month is more accessible, consuming about 24% of the average gross monthly wage. But that number assumes securing a multifamily unit at average rather than median pricing, and it excludes utilities, renter's insurance, and other housing costs.

The 30% rule breaks down in Briargate and Broadmoor, where rents on single-family homes likely exceed $2,000 per month. A renter earning the county average wage would need to spend 34% or more of gross income to live in those submarkets. That math pushes moderate-income renters toward central and eastern Colorado Springs, where workforce-housing units are concentrated.

Military households using Basic Allowance for Housing (BAH) are a partial exception. BAH rates are set by zip code and pay grade, and they generally cover market-rate rent in Colorado Springs for mid-grade enlisted and officer households. This is one reason multifamily occupancy holds at 90.7% even when local wages are below the national average of $1,589 per week.

The 12-24 Month Outlook

The case for rent stability and modest growth over the next one to two years rests on three inputs from the data.

First, the multifamily construction pipeline is thinning. Fewer units under construction now means fewer completions over the next 12 to 24 months, which reduces the supply pressure that has kept rents flat in many Sun Belt markets.

Second, the ADU mandate from Colorado House Bill 24-1152 adds rental supply slowly. Within the City of Colorado Springs, property owners can now add ADUs on single-family lots without owner-occupancy requirements, though the law prohibits short-term rentals on ADU parcels. ADU construction takes time and capital, so the impact on rental supply will be gradual rather than immediate. In unincorporated areas, the law's applicability remains legally unresolved as of early 2026, limiting the supply impact outside city limits.

Third, employment growth, though modest at 1.04% in 2024, is broad-based across healthcare, retail, and professional services. No single employer dominates the base, which limits the downside from a single closure or contraction. The military installations are immune to local economic cycles.

The most realistic scenario for renters and landlords over the next 12 to 24 months: rents drift up modestly, 2–4%, as the construction pipeline empties and demand from military and healthcare employment holds. A sharper price correction in the for-sale market (the county is already down 5.2% in 2025) could keep more would-be buyers in the rental pool, adding upward pressure on demand.

The risk to this outlook is prolonged affordability stress. At $1,777 per month with wages at $1,369 per week, renter budgets are already tight. A rent spike would push vacancy up quickly in a market where most renters cannot absorb significant increases.

If You're a Renter

1. Target multifamily over single-family if affordability is your priority. The multifamily average of $1,448 per month is about $330 below the county median. In a market where your wage likely tracks close to $1,369 per week, that difference is real.

2. Use the elevated inventory to strengthen your negotiating position. Active listings hit 4,336 in July 2025, the highest in five years. Even in the rental market, landlords sitting on vacant units are more willing to offer a free month, waive a deposit, or lock in a longer lease at the current rate. Ask directly.

3. Weigh renting vs. buying carefully before committing to either. With home prices down 5.2% in 2025 and days on market rising to 57 days, the for-sale market has shifted in buyers' favor. Run your numbers through our Rent vs Buy calculator if you're weighing renting vs. buying, especially if you have access to BAH or plan to stay in the county for more than three years.

If You're a Landlord

1. Price to the 90.7% occupancy signal, not the 2021 peak. The market is not as tight as it was when homes sold in 12 days. Average days on market are now 57. Price your unit at or slightly below comparable active listings to minimize vacancy, which costs more than a modest rent reduction.

2. Evaluate an ADU if your lot is within the City of Colorado Springs. HB24-1152 prohibits owner-occupancy requirements and caps ADU parking at one spot per unit. A properly permitted ADU on a single-family lot adds a second income stream without acquiring a second property. Budget for one to two years before the unit generates stabilized income. Do not combine this with a short-term rental strategy: the city prohibits STRs on lots with ADUs.

3. If your property is in unincorporated El Paso County, get parcel-level zoning confirmation before underwriting any ADU income. The state law's applicability to unincorporated areas is unresolved as of early 2026. Older family-occupancy restrictions may still apply, and building an ADU without confirming jurisdiction could create legal and financial exposure.

4. Focus acquisition on the sub-$300K workforce-housing tier if you can find it. Chronic undersupply at that price point anchors demand, and the renter pool at that income level is not converting to homeownership anytime soon given the 82.6% decade-long increase in housing costs. Low property taxes (0.43% effective rate) further improve NOI at this price tier relative to comparable properties in other Colorado markets.