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According to the US Census, the population of the US grew by 23.7 million from 2006 through 2016. But according to the US Census (and to the website Rent Café, 97.1% of the US population growth was composed of renters and only 2.9% were homeowners.
Which cities now have more than 50% renters? Toledo Ohio is now above 50% renters with the highest growth in renter share change at 31.3%. Columbus Ohio is 10th and Cleveland Ohio is 12th.
But in terms of largest increases in renter share, Gilbert Arizona (part of the Phoenix MSA) is number 1 by a wide margin. Mesa AZ and Glendale AZ (both part of the Phoenix MSA) are in 8th and 9th place, respectively.
Where is New York City on this list?
With 5.4 million renters, the City’s rentership rate is 65%. But given the gargantuan size of the rental market, even the massive increase over the past ten years of nearly 440,000 renters – more than the entire renting population in Boston – raised the rentership rate by only 4.5%.
RentCafé’s report also found that the overall population shrank in 12 of the top 100 cities. In eight of them – Toledo, Honolulu, Santa Ana, Baltimore, Cleveland, St. Louis, and Chicago – the ownership population took the entire hit, while the number of renters actually increased.
In Detroit, even the renter population decreased 2%, but this was “trivial compared to the 30% setback” that the homeowner population experienced over the decade, according to RentCafé.
The table below shows the top 100 cities in order of their rentership rates (second column from the right). This is where New York City finally appears! Note that in Newark, Jersey City, Miami, New York City, and Boston, around two-thirds or more of the population lives in rental homes. In the top 42 cities, over 50% of the population lives in rental homes.
Go to RentCafé’s website and look up your city. Washington DC is in 12th place in terms of renter share (2016) with Virginia cities Norfolk and Richmond close by.
Of course, between poor economic policy directives out of Washington DC and The Federal Reserve zero interest rate policies, home prices have skyrocketed faster than wage growth making homeownership difficult for many households.
And home prices are growing at 3 times wage growth for most Americans.
Of course, following the housing boom of the 2000s, the massive default and foreclosure wave left millions of households back in the renter category. But rising home prices have made it more difficult for many households to jump back into homeownership. And the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau didn’t help matters either.
George Mason School of Business student Ariana Hachemi is leading a first time homebuyers in February at United Bank near campus. I will be attending to hear their pitch for homeownership.
Yes, The Fed are desperados. But are finally coming to their senses and slowly raising rates.
Desperados, why don’t you come to your senses
You been out ridin’ fences suppressing interest rates for so long now
Oh, you’re a hard one
I know that you got your reasons (not helping lower/middle income Americans)
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