Half of US tenants can’t afford to pay their rent. Here’s what’s ahead

Half of renters in the United States have found themselves paying more than they can afford, following years of surging rents. But an increase in the construction of multiple-unit buildings has boosted the supply of apartments, which is slowly beginning to rein in runaway rents.

Nationally, rents declined annually in December for the eighth straight month, according to Realtor.com’s monthly report. The median asking rent was $1,713, which was down $4 from November and down $63 from the July 2022 peak.

However, median rent is still $309 higher than the same time in 2019, before the pandemic. That’s a 22% increase.

And people have been feeling it. In some places, rents aren’t dropping at all. Rent is just increasing at a slower pace.

Still, even if rents aren’t dropping like a rock, they aren’t expected to be skyrocketing in the same way this year.

This may come as some relief to the 22.4 million households who, according to Harvard University’s Joint Center for Housing Studies, pay more than a third of their income in rent.