These days, half of American renters are considered cost-burdened, spending more than the recommended 30 percent of their income on housing. Those spending at least 50 percent of their income are at an all-time high. That’s according to a new study by Harvard University’s Joint Center for Housing Studies.
In the five-county Springfield metro, about 47 percent of renters are cost-burdened, some 34,000 households. Within that group, one out of five families are spending half their income or more on housing.
Meanwhile, Springfield’s renters have a median income around $35,000 dollars per year. That’s almost $40,000 less than the median for all American households, according to the U.S. Census.
The Harvard study also says homelessness in America is at an all-time high, citing national point-in-time counts from last year with at least 653,000 unsheltered people.