While Generation Z singles and couples that entered the rental market in recent years have become the largest demographic group of renters in the country, their impact on regional markets remains largely mixed.

A new study by RealPage found that singles and couples that are part of the TikTok generation and late Millennials now comprise more than half of all renters in the U.S., despite facing higher economic challenges due to their coming of age amid the coronavirus pandemic and subsequent inflationary pressures.

Singles in their late twenties and young couples tend to be significantly more sensitive to economic changes as they tend to have comparably lower incomes than most other groups, RealPage said. These constraints have kept them concentrated in Sun Belt and Midwestern markets rather than coastal areas.