Military households spent $16.2 million on housing in 58 Puerto Rico towns as asking rents slip 6.1% from a year ago

Median monthly asking rent (asking rents, not signed leases)

$1,587 (October 2026)

Drop in median asking rent from 12 months earlier

6.1% (October 2026)

Median days a rental listing stays on the market (partial; a listing taken down counts as leased)

20.1 days (October 2026)

Rent and utilities, town by town

The records of the Overseas Housing Allowance program show an average of $1,350,593.69 a month in rent and utility payments in island communities, of which about $817,542.69 a month went to rent and $533,051 to water and electricity, according to the outlet.

Military personnel assigned to Puerto Rico live in towns across the north, south, east, west and center of the island, from San Juan, Bayamón, Guaynabo and Carolina to Ponce, Mayagüez, Caguas and Arecibo, the outlet reported. The installation's acting commander said the figures show the Army's presence is felt well beyond the fort's gates, with service members paying rent and consuming services in those towns. The Army housing office at Fort Buchanan keeps a registry of available properties for personnel assigned to the island, which has an annual budget of about $500 million and supports a military community estimated at 15,000.

What landlords are asking

Landlords in Puerto Rico are asking a median $1,587 (October 2026) a month in rent, 6.1% (October 2026) less than 12 months earlier. Both figures are asking rents, and they do not record what tenants agreed to pay on signed leases.

A typical rental listing in Puerto Rico stays on the market for a median of 20.1 (October 2026) days before it comes down. The figure is partial, and it counts a listing that is taken down as leased.