There may be some upside to dramatically higher rents in areas:  those who have experienced high - and rising - rents may be experiencing rent-flation fatigue and with financing rates already down sharply off their highs they are likely to start exploring buying as a viable alternative. By now most have realized that rents are usually directly prone to inflation and often escalate beyond the "going rate", unlike a fixed mortgage rate.

rent-inflation

After several years of rising rents, many tenants are now conditioned to a different - and higher - expectation of a monthly housing cost. This higher regular cost has become a habit. Repeat something for many months or years, and it starts to feel more 'normal'. Add in those renters who look back on all those payments and see zero equity build-up. Now, most parts of the US confronted with higher insurance and maintenance costs are becoming accustomed to them too. Some needed some rather dramatic adjustment after being under-funded or neglected for years.

At the end of the day most home buyers evaluate the monthly cost of buying a home, not merely the purchase price:  consumers accustomed to higher monthly rent costs - in a downward trending interest rates environment - make for a potent set of home buyers.