Renter cost-burdened share, explained

What it measures

The renter cost-burdened share is the percentage of renter-occupied households that spend 30% or more of their household income on gross rent (contract rent plus utilities). The 30% threshold is the long-standing US affordability standard, set by HUD and adopted across federal housing programs. A household above the threshold is "cost-burdened"; a household above 50% is "severely cost-burdened" (a tighter subset that this metric does not separately report).

The denominator is renter-occupied units paying cash rent, units occupied rent-free (about 2-3% of renter households nationally, typically employees living in employer-provided housing) are excluded entirely.

Why it matters

Cost-burden is the foundation of the US housing-affordability discussion. HUD, state housing-finance agencies, and the academic housing-policy literature all use the 30%-of-income threshold to define when a household is paying more for housing than is sustainable alongside other necessary expenses. Rent-burdened share predicts evictions, doubling-up, household instability, and downstream effects on children's educational outcomes. Cities with rent-burdened shares above 50% are typically the focus of legislative interest in rent stabilization, eviction protection, and affordable-housing production.

How the Census measures it

ACS Table B25070, Gross Rent as a Percentage of Household Income in the Past 12 Months. The Census Bureau calculates the ratio for each renter household and assigns it to a bracket; CensusEasy sums the brackets at 30% and above (30-34.9%, 35-39.9%, 40-49.9%, and 50%+) and divides by the universe.

How to read the numbers

The US renter cost-burdened share is about 50%, half of US renter households spend more than 30% of income on housing. State rates range from about 40% (West Virginia, North Dakota) to nearly 60% (California, Florida, Hawaii). Among large metros, the leaders are concentrated in California and the Northeast Corridor; Miami, New York, Los Angeles, and the Bay Area all exceed 55%. The lowest rates are in low-cost metros with diverse housing stock (Pittsburgh, St. Louis, Indianapolis). A rate above 55% in a metro means the rental market is structurally unaffordable for a majority of the people who live in it.

Caveats and limitations

The 30% threshold is uniform across the country, which understates the burden in low-income areas (where the remaining 70% buys less) and overstates it in high-income areas (where the remaining 70% is still substantial). The metric also doesn't distinguish between voluntary high spending on housing (renters in expensive units by choice) and involuntary cost burden (renters who would prefer a cheaper unit but can't find one). For low-income renters specifically, the 50%-or-more "severely cost-burdened" subset is the more meaningful policy threshold.