Do these 3 things before closing this tab:
1Fix the driver behind crashes, sound loss and screen glitches2Clear out junk files and repair common Windows errors3Scan for outdated or missing drivers - takes under a minuteRedfin reported that downtown Seattle’s median asking rent for newly listed apartments reached $2,000 in December 2024, up 2.5% from a year earlier and the first year-over-year increase in 17 months. That rise came before Amazon’s five-day office requirement took effect on January 1, 2025, so it does not show that Amazon’s policy caused rents to increase. Redfin said it was too early to tell whether the policy would affect rental demand.
What Redfin’s December 2024 rent figure measures
The $2,000 figure is a median asking rent for newly listed units in apartment buildings with at least five units. Redfin calculated it over the three-month period ending December 31, 2024; it is not a measure of what every Seattle renter paid or of current 2026 rents. Redfin’s January 29, 2025 report defines downtown to include the central business district, the waterfront along Alaskan Way, First Hill, Pioneer Square, Belltown, the International District and Denny Triangle. The analysis included neighborhoods with sufficient data.
Asking rents on new listings can move differently from existing tenants’ lease costs. The measure describes prices landlords were asking for newly listed apartments in the defined area and period, not a typical household’s rent bill or the cost of renewing a lease.
Did Amazon’s five-day office policy cause the increase?
The timing does not support that conclusion. Amazon announced in late 2024 that employees would be expected to work in offices five days a week starting January 1, 2025, up from three days a week. Redfin’s rent measure covers the three months ending December 31, 2024, before the policy began.
#1 Best Overall
- Your favorite music and content – Play music, audiobooks, and podcasts from Amazon Music, Apple Music, Spotify and others or via Bluetooth throughout your home.
- Alexa is happy to help – Ask Alexa for weather updates and to set hands-free timers, get answers to your questions and even hear jokes. Need a few extra minutes in the morning? Just tap your Echo Dot to snooze your alarm.
- Keep your home comfortable – Control compatible smart home devices with your voice and routines triggered by built-in motion or indoor temperature sensors. Create routines to automatically turn on lights when you walk into a room, or start a fan if the inside temperature goes above your comfort zone.
- Do more with device pairing – Fill your home with music using compatible Echo devices in different rooms, or create a home theatre system with Fire TV.
- Say goodbye to drop-offs and buffering - With eero Built-in, Echo Dot doubles as a mesh wifi extender, adding up to 1,000 sq. ft. of wifi coverage to your existing eero network.
Redfin Senior Economist Sheharyar Bokhari said it was too early to tell whether the policy affected the uptick, adding that most workers already lived within commuting distance of an office. The December change therefore shows a rent increase that preceded the new requirement—not evidence that the requirement produced it.
Bokhari described a possible future channel, not a measured outcome: if construction levels off while more employees are expected to commute to downtown offices daily, rents could begin rising in inner-ring neighborhoods where commuting is easier. That conditional forecast should not be read as proof that Amazon has already raised rents.
Rank #2
- Your favorite music and content – Play music, audiobooks, and podcasts from Amazon Music, Apple Music, Spotify and others or via Bluetooth throughout your home.
- Alexa is happy to help – Ask Alexa for weather updates and to set hands-free timers, get answers to your questions and even hear jokes. Need a few extra minutes in the morning? Just tap your Echo Dot to snooze your alarm.
- Keep your home comfortable – Control compatible smart home devices with your voice and routines triggered by built-in motion or indoor temperature sensors. Create routines to automatically turn on lights when you walk into a room, or start a fan if the inside temperature goes above your comfort zone.
- Do more with device pairing – Fill your home with music using compatible Echo devices in different rooms, or create a home theatre system with Fire TV.
- Say goodbye to drop-offs and buffering - With eero Built-in, Echo Dot doubles as a mesh wifi extender, adding up to 1,000 sq. ft. of wifi coverage to your existing eero network.
How downtown rents changed before December 2024
Redfin’s historical series shows large swings rather than a steady climb. Its report put downtown asking rent near $2,500 before the pandemic in 2020, at $1,399 in February 2021, and at a peak of $3,118 in August 2022. By December 2024, the median had fallen roughly 36% from that August 2022 peak to $2,000.
Redfin attributed the decline from the peak to a major uptick in apartment construction. Bokhari said Seattle had built more new apartments than almost any metro outside the Sun Belt in recent years, helping keep rents in check even as workers returned to hybrid or full-time office work. The construction explanation is Redfin’s account of the trend, not a separate estimate isolating the effect of supply from every other influence.
Rank #3
- Meet Echo Dot Max: Experience rich room-filling sound that automatically adapts to your space and fine-tunes playback. Features a built-in smart home hub and Omnisense technology for highly personalized experiences.
- Music to your ears: With nearly 3x the bass versus Echo Dot (2022 release), it fits beautifully in any space, delivering your personal sound stage with deep bass and enhanced clarity. Listen to streaming services, such as Amazon Music, Apple Music, Spotify, and SiriusXM. Encore!
- Do more with device pairing: Connect compatible Echo smart speakers and smart displays in different rooms, or pair with a second Echo Dot Max to enjoy even richer sound
- Simple smart home control: Set routines, pair and control lights, locks, and thousands of smart home devices that work with Alexa without needing a separate smart home hub. With Omnisense technology, you can activate routines via temperature or presence detection.
- Say goodbye to drop-offs and buffering - With eero Built-in, Echo Dot Max doubles as a mesh wifi extender, adding up to 1,000 sq. ft. of wifi coverage to your existing eero network.
December 2024 rents varied by neighborhood
The downtown-wide increase did not describe every neighborhood. Redfin’s December 2024 figures show a split across the areas it analyzed:
| Area | Median asking rent | Year-over-year change |
|---|---|---|
| Capitol Hill | $1,825 | +7.2% |
| Central District | $1,895 | +1.2% |
| Westlake | $2,265 | +1.0% |
| Queen Anne | $1,981 | −13.7% |
| South Lake Union | $2,385 | −13.5% |
| Seattle metro | $2,017 | +0.5% |
| Downtown Redmond | $2,350 | +4.3% |
| Downtown Bellevue | $2,579 | −3.0% |
All rents and annual changes in the table are Redfin’s December 2024 figures, not current estimates. The neighborhood differences matter when interpreting the downtown median: the gains in some areas coexisted with sizable declines in Queen Anne and South Lake Union.
Rank #4
- Your favorite music and content – Play music, audiobooks, and podcasts from Amazon Music, Apple Music, Spotify and others or via Bluetooth throughout your home.
- Alexa is happy to help – Ask Alexa for weather updates and to set hands-free timers, get answers to your questions and even hear jokes. Need a few extra minutes in the morning? Just tap your Echo Dot to snooze your alarm.
- Keep your home comfortable – Control compatible smart home devices with your voice and routines triggered by built-in motion or indoor temperature sensors. Create routines to automatically turn on lights when you walk into a room, or start a fan if the inside temperature goes above your comfort zone.
- Do more with device pairing – Fill your home with music using compatible Echo devices in different rooms, or create a home theatre system with Fire TV.
- Say goodbye to drop-offs and buffering - With eero Built-in, Echo Dot doubles as a mesh wifi extender, adding up to 1,000 sq. ft. of wifi coverage to your existing eero network.
What later construction data and current listings can—and cannot—show
The Downtown Seattle Association’s Economic Report page reports that more than 1,600 multifamily homes were delivered in the city center in 2025, with thousands more under construction. That provides later context on supply, but it is not an asking-rent measure and does not establish how those deliveries affected rents.
Redfin’s live Downtown Seattle rental listings show individual available units and may include promotions. A listing snapshot is not a representative median: prices reflect the particular units available at the time, while Redfin’s historical figure is a three-month median for newly listed apartments in qualifying buildings. Without matching dates and methodology, the two should not be compared as if they were the same series.
Best Value
- MEET ECHO SPOT - A sleek smart alarm clock with Alexa and big vibrant sound. Ready to help you wake up, wind down, and so much more.
- CUSTOMIZABLE SMART CLOCK - See time, weather, and song titles at a glance, control smart home devices, and more. Personalize your display with your favorite clock face and fun colors.
- BIG VIBRANT SOUND - Enjoy rich sound with clear vocals and deep bass. Just ask Alexa to play music, podcasts, and audiobooks. See song titles and touch to control your music.
- EASE INTO THE DAY - Set up an Alexa routine that gently wakes you with music and gradual light. Glance at the time, check reminders, or ask Alexa for weather updates.
- KEEP YOUR HOME COMFORTABLE - Control compatible smart home devices. Just ask Alexa to turn on lights or touch the screen to dim. Create routines that use motion detection to turn down the thermostat as you head out or open the blinds when you walk into a room.
The cited reporting and listing snapshot do not establish a like-for-like current downtown rent figure or isolate Amazon’s effect. To answer whether rents are rising now, readers need a current series with the same geographic boundary, unit criteria and time window—not a comparison between a dated median and a handful of active listings.
Quick Recap
Product prices and availability are accurate as of the date/time indicated and are subject to change. Any price and availability information displayed on Amazon at the time of purchase will apply.
