Average U.S. rent burden reached 30 percent for the first time ever at the end of 2022, according to a recent analysis.
The national average rent-to-income (RTI) in the final quarter of 2024 rose 1.5% from year-ago and 0.2% from Q3, according to recent analysis by Moody’s. It’s the first time RTI has reached 30% since Moddy’s began tracking the data more than 20 years ago.
An online article, linked below, shares more details from the report, including context of how rent-to-income trends break down at the regional level and how they shifted during the pandemic.
According to the analysis, Nevada (+4.9%), Florida (+4.8%), Alabama (+4.2%), South Carolina (+4.2%), Arizona (+4.1%), and New Mexico (4.0%) have experienced the highest increase in the state’s average rent burden over the past three years, due mostly to rental prices increases outpacing household income growth.
A few states have achieved recent relief from rent burden, however. RTI dropped in Maryland (-0.62%), Oklahoma (-0.49%), Arkansas (-0.16%), Minnesota (-0.08%), and Utah (-0.02%) over the course of 2022. In Q4, Georgia (-1.7%) and Maryland (-1.2%) both recorded average rent decline at the state level.
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City of Albany
UCLA Lewis Center for Regional Policy Studies
Mpact (formerly Rail~Volution)
Chaddick Institute at DePaul University
City of Piedmont, CA
Great Falls Development Authority, Inc.
HUDs Office of Policy Development and Research