The cost of renting a home continues to rise in the United States as more people return to work in metro areas, boosting demand for rental apartments. A sustained increase in rents could lead to more persistent inflation and challenge the central bank’s view that inflation is “transitory,” experts say. Rents dropped significantly during the pandemic across the country, with large cities like San Francisco and New York leading the nation. As of June, however, the median national rent was up 8.4 percent year-over-year, according to Apartment List, an online rental marketplace. The “pandemic pricing” is over in many cities and the market is quickly returning back to pre-pandemic levels, according to Rob Warnock, researcher at Apartment List. For example, rents were up more than 4 percent in New York and Seattle in June only, recovering much faster than expected. Consumer price index (CPI) in May rose by 5 percent from a year ago, surprising …