We don’t spend enough time discussing the financial burden renters face, such as housing expenses eating up more than half of the incomes of roughly 1-in-4 California tenants.
My trusty spreadsheet identified this affordability challenge by analyzing 2024 Census Bureau housing data for the 50 states and the District of Columbia” target=”_blank”>2024 Census Bureau housing data for the 50 states and the District of Columbia. These latest figures detail swings in who’s renting, how much they pay, and how many tenant households are financially swamped by rental expenses – that’s rent plus utilities exceeding 50% of incomes.
Remember, California is the nation’s largest rental market with 6.1 million tenant households. Next are Texas at 4.3 million, New York at 3.6 million, Florida at 2.9 million, and Illinois at 1.7 million.
Sadly, California is also tops for suffocating rental costs, with 1.6 million extremely burdened households in 2024. No. 2 for 50%-plus-burdens was Texas at 998,000, then New York at 938,000, Florida at 856,200, and Pennsylvania at 388,300.
When you view this pocketbook pressure as a share of all renters, you see these tenant tensions are not unique to the Golden State.
The math shows 27% of California renters are suffering this extreme financial stress. That slice is topped only by Florida’s 29% and equals Nevada’s share.
This distress is not far above the nation’s 24% share of renters facing a 50%-plus burden. No. 4 was New York at 26%. No. 5 was Connecticut at 25%. And Texas was No. 19 at 23%.
Or look at it this way: Californians fill 13% of the nation’s 46.1 million rentals. However, Golden Staters were 15% of the 10.9 million most-rent-stressed Americans.
How did renters get here?
Last year, California’s median costs for all renters ran $2,104 a month – that’s 60% above the nation’s $1,319 and the largest expense among the states.
Next came Hawaii at $1,942, D.C. at $1,931, Massachusetts at $1,848, and Washington state at $1,824. Texas was No. 20 at $1,475 and Florida, No. 7, at $1,812.
Which are the cheapest places to rent across America? West Virginia was tops at $883 monthly, then North Dakota at $980, Iowa at $981, Arkansas at $982, and Mississippi at $990.
What exacerbated the financial strain on tenants was soaring rent costs during the pandemic. The coronavirus push for larger living spaces created a rent-hike momentum that has only recently cooled. And this is not only a Golden State upswing.
Since 2019, California tenants have seen their expenses jump 30%. Ponder that this surge was only the 32nd largest advance among the states.
Nationally, rental costs ballooned 39% over five years, with the largest increases in Idaho (57%), Arizona (52%), Florida and Nevada (46%), and Utah (45%). Texas was No. 16 at 35%.
The smallest hikes since 2019 were found in Hawaii at 18%, Alaska and DC at 20%, and Iowa and Wyoming at 21%.
Owners’ plight
Now, let’s compare renting with homeownership.
Statewide, 15% of California owners were in the 50%-plus stress club in 2024 – the highest share among the states and well above the nation’s 9% troubled slice.
The typical Californian homeowner pays an estimated $2,280 monthly – 70% above the $1,340 national norm. Costs rose 23% for California owners since 2019.
Jonathan Lansner is the business columnist for the Southern California News Group. He can be reached at jlansner@scng.com