Half of US Renters Can No Longer Afford Housing, Study Finds

Half of US Renters Can No Longer , Afford Housing, Study Finds.

A growing number of households are struggling to pay rent, according to a new report by the Joint Center for Housing Studies of Harvard University.

The study found that a record half of renters in the United States paid over 30% of their income toward rent and utilities in 2022.

.

Almost half of those people were found to be extremely cost-burdened, paying over 50% of their income.

.

We actually saw increases across every single income category that we look at, which sort of surprised us, Whitney Airgood-Obrycki, senior research associate with the center and the report's lead author, via NPR.

The study found that the largest leap in unaffordability was for households with an annual income between $30,000 and $74,000.

.

The study found that the largest leap in unaffordability was for households with an annual income between $30,000 and $74,000.

.

Among those with full-time jobs, a third of all renters were living under cost-burdened conditions.

For those making less than $30,000 a year, a staggering all-time high of 83% were cost-burdened.

At the same time, homeless rates in the U.S. have also hit a record high.

.

We simply don't have enough homes that people can afford, Jeff Olivet, executive director of the U.S. Interagency Council on Homelessness, via NPR.

And when you combine rapidly rising rent — that it just costs more per month for people to get into a place and keep a place — you get this vicious game of musical chairs, Jeff Olivet, executive director of the U.S. Interagency Council on Homelessness, via NPR