More Americans Can’t Afford Their Rent

Americans across the country are spending more than they can afford on rent, according to a report from Realtor.com.

The February Rental Report found that despite a slight decrease in rent prices, affordability continued to get worse in 26 major metros.

The least affordable metros where people spend more than 30% of their salary on rent are Miami, Los Angeles, New York, San Diego, Riverside (CA), Boston, Orlando and Tampa.

In February, the median rent in the 50 largest metros declined to $1,716, down $1 from last month and $48 from the peak, according to the report. However, rents are still up 3.1% from one year ago, making rental payments less affordable. Renters earning the typical household income devoted 25.3% of their income to lease a typical for-rent home, up from 24.8% a year ago.

The pace of rent growth has slowed for the past 13 months and experienced single-digit growth for the past seven months. Despite this, rent prices are still $296 (20.8%) higher than the same time in 2020.

All eight of the most rent-burdened metros are located along the coast with Florida and California leading the pack with three each. On the other hand, the Midwest led the way in terms of affordability. Oklahoma City was the most affordable rental market in February with residents paying 17.4% of income on rent, followed by Columbus (18.2%), Minneapolis (19.0%), Cincinnati (19.4%), and Kansas City, MO (19.8%).