A new report ranks the Worcester and Springfield area among the hottest small rental markets in the country.

The two cities ranked 21st on the list, compiled by RentCafe, a rental property listing platform. The study analyzed apartment data for 139 rental markets based on occupancy rates, the number of renters applying for an available unit, vacancy days, the percentage of renewed leases and the share of new apartments.

RentCafe says in Worcester and Springfield, on average, there are about 13 prospective renters competing for each vacant unit in the city, compared to nine nationwide.

Doug Ressler, manager of business intelligence at RentCafe, said since there is still a shortage of housing stock to buy, people, especially millennials, are renting for longer.

"With interest rates, the cost of affordability of buying versus renting is a large gap,” Ressler said. “So, renting makes much more sense economically than buying at the present moment.

“Right now, it’s a renter’s market. To be able to retain a renter, what you're seeing is landlords offering concessions and they'll be offering more concessions. Renters have the ability to dictate terms and conditions in terms of what they want to do from a rental perspective."

The study also shows vacant apartments in Worcester and Springfield were filled in an average of 40 days, versus the national benchmark of 38 days.

Providence, Rhode Island ranked second among the hottest small rental markets in 2023, and Portland, Maine ranked fourth.