Rent inflation remains a pressure point for small businesses

Rent inflation remains a pressure point for small businesses. The Bank of America Institute found that average monthly rent payment growth for the bank's small business clients rose 12% year-over-year in May. The rent payments per client closely track the nonresidential real estate rents component of the Producer Price Index, which suggests the increases are largely due to inflation rather than small businesses upgrading to bigger or better space. Easing wage inflation has taken some pressure off of small businesses, Bank of America says.