US Renters Face Storm of Rising Costs
A building boom has helped slow rent increases. But affordable apartments remain scarce, and higher energy costs and cuts to housing aid further cloud the forecast.
A new apartment complex being built in Alhamba, California, in 2023.
Photographer: Frederic J. Brown/AFP via Getty Images
Takeaways by Bloomberg AI
Despite one of the more substantial surges of new apartment construction in decades, the benefits of growing supply have not trickled down to the most cost-burdened renters in the US.
That’s the conclusion of Harvard’s Joint Center for Housing Studies, which this week released its annual State of the Nation’s Housing Report, one of the most in-depth studies linking housing costs and renter incomes. The researchers found that the portion of the country’s renters who face significant cost burdens has hit record levels — and the strain has moved up the income ladder. A full 65% of working-age renters can’t cover non-housing costs after monthly housing payments, according to a JCHS analysis.