Design District Dallas Apartment Locator: New Towers Between Stemmons and the Levee
As your Design District Dallas apartment locator, we checked 10 places this week, with prices from $935 a month after free rent. The Design District is showrooms and galleries wedged between Stemmons Freeway and the Trinity levee, with newer midrise buildings and towers among them. Buildings still filling up hand out some of the biggest free rent offers in central Dallas, and they carry long lists of fees too. There's no rail stop inside the district, so most renters drive, though a bike path now ducks under I-35E to the Katy Trail.
- Typical 1 bedroom
- $1,420/mo
- Places with homes available
- 10
- With a special
- 80%
- Our help costs you
- $0
After free rent, before fees. Checked . See this week's deals
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TREC #562021
Spirit Real Estate Group
Design District apartments by size this week
We checked 10 places in Design District on November 6, 2026. Prices count any firm free rent, spread over the lease, and are before fees. Pick your size to see the best deals.
This week in Design District
80%
of places here have a move-in special
Firm free rent offers here give about 4 weeks.
−$132
typical 2 bedroom since November 1
Prices here are easing. A good week to look.
Our picks in Design District
Places we like right now, in each kind of building. Tell us your budget, and we'll send the names and floor plans.
Newer buildings
Built or redone since 2015
1 / 31 Bedroom from $1,446/mo net effective10 weeks free + $500 gift cardOur takeFitness classes, a strong gym and big views give this building more personality than most new towers.Get the name →
1 / 61 Bedroom from $1,385/mo net effective4 weeks freeOur takeHomes here can come with a strong downtown view, and the office team is warm and quick to help.Get the name →
1 / 51 Bedroom from $1,395/moUp to 6 weeks free on select unitsOur takeA smaller, quiet spot with live and work space options and work orders that get done right away.Get the name →
Find your best deal in Design District
Pick what you want. We compare each deal with buildings like it here: same size, about the same age.
Circles show the general area, not the building. Numbers match the deals below.
1 / 8Top deal on this list
$183 below similar 1 bedrooms here
Up to $1,000 for move-in
$1,232
/mo
1 bed · 667 sq ft · $1.85 per sq ft
Class A · Built 2016 · 3.5+ stars on Google
Up $33 since November 1 · 25 homes available this week
Get the name and floor plan- 1 / 6★ Our pick
$446 below similar 2 bedrooms here
2 bed · 1,172 sq ft · $1,778 listed
Class A · Built 2016 · 4+ stars on Google
12 homes available this week
4 weeks free on a 12‑month lease
You save about $1,640
$1,642/mo net effectiveGet the name
Prices are rent only. Monthly fees and the deposit are extra. Ask for your list, and we'll send the names and floor plans.
Nothing here matches all of that this week. Tell us what you want and we'll look for buildings that fit.
Why our prices are lower than what the community quotes
When a community gives free rent, we spread it over the whole lease and show what you pay a month on average. The community quotes the full rent, and many take the free rent off your first months. You pay the same total either way. Our way lets you compare one deal with another. Fees and the deposit are extra.
Why our prices are lower than what the community quotes
When a community gives free rent, we spread it over the whole lease and show what you pay a month on average. The community quotes the full rent, and many take the free rent off your first months. You pay the same total either way. Our way lets you compare one deal with another. Fees and the deposit are extra.
See all the numbers: prices by size, newer vs. older, week by week
Prices by size
"Middle half" is the range half the places here start in. A price under it beats about 3 in 4 places.
| Size | Typical | Cheapest | Middle half | Per sq ft | Since November 1 | Places open |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Studio | $1,301 | $935 | $1,051 to $1,564 | $2.46 | down $108 | 7 |
| 1 bed | $1,420 | $1,159 | $1,286 to $1,973 | $2.21 | down $114 | 10 |
| 2 bed | $2,087 | $1,510 | $1,661 to $2,909 | $1.83 | down $132 | 10 |
| 3 bed | n/a | $3,400 | n/a | n/a | n/a | 2 |
Newer vs. older buildings
Newer means built or redone since 2015. Middle means mostly 1995 to 2014. Older means built before 1995. Prices are for a 1 bedroom. How we sort them
| Buildings | Typical 1 bed | With a special | Usual weeks free | Per sq ft | Places |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Newer (Class A) | $1,446 | 78% | 4 weeks | $2.42 | 9 |
| Middle (Class B) | n/a | 100% | n/a | $1.55 | 1 |
Prices week by week
The typical price from each weekly check since Oct 28. A line heading down means prices here are easing.
Each place's price is its lowest listed available apartment of that size, after any firm free rent and before fees. We leave out income restricted, tax credit, 55+ and student housing. Prices can change any day, so get the final price in writing from the building before you apply.
Areas we cover in and around Design District
Trinity GrovesAcross the river at the far end of the Margaret Hunt Hill Bridge, Trinity Groves is a cluster of restaurants in West Dallas.
Newer midsize apartment buildings have filled in around it, and Singleton Boulevard leads back toward Downtown.
RiverfrontRiverfront Boulevard, once called Industrial Boulevard, runs along the Trinity levee on the district's south side.
Converted warehouses and new apartment buildings sit near it, with the Trinity Strand Trail and downtown a short drive away.
Market CenterThe showroom strip off Stemmons Freeway (I-35E) toward the Dallas Market Center is where the area's wholesale trade still sits.
Apartments here are newer midsize buildings among the showrooms, and freeway noise is constant near I-35E.
Photos: Riverfront: Michael Barera, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons; Market Center: mliu92 from San Mateo, CC BY-SA 2.0, Wikimedia Commons.
Design District Apartments in New Buildings Still Filling Up
- Free weeks at towers still filling up turned into a monthly price, so a big offer gets compared fairly
- Garage, package locker and amenity charges added to the rent, since they can outweigh the free rent here
- Renewal rent asked about before you sign, since a new building's starting rent can jump in month thirteen
- Homes near the Hi Line Connector or the Trinity Strand Trail picked out if you'd rather bike to Uptown or the hospitals
Getting Around: Stemmons, the Trails and the Nearest Trains
The district runs northwest from Downtown along the Trinity, with Irving Boulevard and Hi Line Drive as its main streets. Stemmons Freeway wraps the north and east sides, Victory Park and the arena sit just across it, and Oak Lawn is over the freeway to the northeast. The Margaret Hunt Hill Bridge crosses to Trinity Groves, and Riverfront Boulevard heads toward the south side of Downtown.
No train stops inside the district. Market Center and Victory stations are just across Stemmons. Buses run through, but most renters keep a car. Parking is easier than Downtown, yet garage spaces in the newer towers still cost extra each month.
At rush hour, traffic on Stemmons can change a lot in 15 minutes. Dallas Market Center's trade weeks in January and June add to it, so test the drive at the time you'd really leave.
New buildings: where the free rent math picks the better deal
Most of the housing here went up in the past 15 years, mostly midrise buildings and a few towers run by large management companies. Having so many new buildings in one spot is why the free rent offers run so deep: a building still filling up gives away weeks to get leases signed.
Weeks free isn't a percent off. The math in our move-in specials guide turns six weeks on a long lease and a month on a 12 month lease into one number you can compare. The better offer often flips once you do.
Then check two more things. A new tower's amenity fee, garage space, package lockers and trash pickup at your door can cost more over a year than the special saves. And many buildings with big offers bill you for the free weeks if you move out early, with the terms tucked into an extra page rather than the main lease.
Day to day in the Design District
The Design District is showrooms and galleries by day and a short list of dinner spots by night, packed between I-35E and the Trinity levee. Most errands take a car, but trails reach the river and Uptown.
- Getting in and out of the Design District
- The river, the levee and a bridge turned park
- Galleries, antiques and dinner nearby
- Art shows, games and market weeks
- What we tell Design District renters
Getting in and out of the Design District
No DART train stops inside the district, so plan on a car. Leaving at 8am on a weekday, Downtown is about 11 minutes away and the Medical District about 8; DFW Airport takes about 23 and Legacy West about 30. On a bike, the Hi Line Connector is a 1 mile path from the Katy Trail by American Airlines Center, under I-35E and into the district. It meets the Trinity Strand Trail, which runs past the Market Center and Parkland stations to Inwood station.
Trinity Strand Trail
Our pick for a car free ride to the hospitals or Uptown; go early on a weekday before the sun gets on the concrete.
- Bike commuting
- Morning runs
- Reaching Uptown
Margaret Hunt Hill Bridge
The white arch is the quick drive to Trinity Groves for dinner, and it lights up after dark.
- Dinner in West Dallas
- Night photos
The river, the levee and a bridge turned park
The Trinity Skyline Trail is a paved path on the river side of the levee, with the downtown skyline in view most of the way. It ties into the Continental Avenue Bridge, an old car bridge turned into a park for walkers and bikes, with shade, seats and a splash pad. Park at the west end of the bridge; the east side has no way down to the floodway.
Continental Avenue Bridge
A flat walk over the river with the skyline straight ahead; sunset is the time, and the west end has the parking.
- Sunset walks
- Skyline photos
- Easy bike rides
Trinity Skyline Trail
Long, open and flat on the levee, so it works for a steady run or ride; bring water, there's little shade.
- Long runs
- Bike rides
- Skyline views
Galleries, antiques and dinner nearby
Dragon Street is the gallery row, with art and antiques behind old warehouse fronts, and Slocum Street is the antiques strip. Restaurants and craft beer spots sit between the showrooms, so a night out here means a few blocks on foot or a short drive, not one long strip. For more dinner choices, Trinity Groves sits at the far end of the Margaret Hunt Hill Bridge, and Victory Park is just over I-35E.
Dragon Street
Walk it on a weekday afternoon when the galleries and antique shops are open and the showrooms are busy.
- Gallery browsing
- Antique hunting
- Afternoon walks
Art shows, games and market weeks
Dallas Contemporary fills a former warehouse on Glass Street with changing contemporary art shows. The Mavericks and Stars play just across I-35E at American Airlines Center. Twice a year, in January and June, the Dallas Market Center holds its big home and gift market.
Dallas Market Center
Mostly open only to store buyers and designers, but it drives the traffic on Stemmons during market weeks.
- Market week work
- Trade shows
Dallas Contemporary
Check what's showing before you go; the exhibits change through the year.
- Rainy afternoons
- New art shows
What we tell Design District renters
Market weeks in January and June bring buyers from out of town to the Market Center, so expect heavier traffic near Stemmons those weeks. On Mavericks and Stars nights, the freeway exits by the arena back up before the game, so plan an evening drive around them. If you'd rather bike to Uptown than drive, ask how far the unit is from the Hi Line Connector; its lit underpass skips the freeway ramps.
Design District questions
Why are Design District specials so large?
So many new buildings opened in a small area that each one competes to fill its floors. A big offer mostly tells you a building isn't full yet. It doesn't tell you what the place is worth long term. Spread across the lease, those offers bring the district's typical one bedroom to $1,420 and its least expensive open unit to $1,159.
What happens to a Design District rent at renewal?
Free rent covers the first lease only, so the rent can climb toward full price in month thirteen. Ask what the unit renewed at last year and whether the offer repeats.
Can I walk to Downtown from the Design District?
It's a short drive more than a walk, with Stemmons in the way. By bike, the Hi Line Connector runs under I-35E to the Katy Trail, and the Trinity Strand Trail leads toward the hospital district.
Does anything affect traffic here during the year?
Dallas Market Center's big trade markets each January and June bring buyers from out of town, and Mavericks and Stars games back up the exits near the arena. Plan evening drives around both.
Is there an apartment locator who covers the Design District?
We do. We follow the towers still filling up between Stemmons and the levee, along with nearby Victory Park and Trinity Groves. We'll show you each offer as a monthly number before you choose.
Looking in Design District?
Tell us the rent you're aiming for and your lease start, and we'll compare the Design District towers still offering free weeks. Read up on move-in specials, new apartments and true monthly cost.
Free to renters · No credit pull · Brokered by Spirit Real Estate Group, TREC #562021