Researchers say that in 2022, a record half of people in the United States renting a place to live used a massive chunk of their income for rent and utilities.
In its article, published Thursday, NPR cited a recent report from the Joint Center for Housing Studies of Harvard University regarding the desperate situation that is hurting people across the nation.
In July, a report found the flood of legal and illegal migrants is inflating costs Americans must pay to have a roof over their heads.
The center’s report found that in 2022, “as rents spiked during the COVID-19 pandemic, a record half of U.S. renters paid more than 30% of their income for rent and utilities. Nearly half of those people were severely cost-burdened, paying more than 50% of their income,” the NPR article continued:
“We actually saw increases across every single income category that we look at, which sort of surprised us,” says Whitney Airgood-Obrycki, a senior research associate with the center and the report’s lead author.
Since 2019, the biggest jump in unaffordability was for households making $30,000 to $74,999 a year. Even among those working full time, a third of all renters were still cost-burdened.
In July, a report found the flood of legal and illegal migrants is inflating costs Americans must pay to have a roof over their heads.