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Since 1995, housing prices have boomed. At the same time, rents have risen to their highest levels in decades. In a weak labor market, many renters spend more of their incomes on paying their rents. This has put many renters, who are disproportionately lower income families, in a bind. Many renters have a harder time moving into their own homes and must spend a growing share of their incomes on rising rents. Poor and minority renters in particular also must cope with worsening public education and transportation systems. A closer look at the data shows the following:
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Since 1995, when the housing boom began inflation adjusted rents have risen to their highest level in thirty years.
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Rising rents come at a time of lower inflation-adjusted renter incomes. The typical income for renter families fell by 8.4 percent from 1995 to 2003.
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Minorities face added obstacles in the rental market due to persistent housing discrimination.
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Mobility from renting to owning has slowed. The share of owners who were renters in the previous year declined by 13 percent from 1995 to 2003.
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Renters live in worse neighborhoods and lower-quality homes than owners. Renters have also experienced worsening public education, and many renters, especially African-Americans and poor families, have seen higher costs associated with transportation. The deteriorations for renters were worse than for homeowners. |
Full Report in PDF
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