U.S. Short 7.3 Million Homes for Lowest-Income Renters

NLIHC released its annual report The Gap: A Shortage of Affordable Homes. This year’s report finds:  

• A shortage of 7.3 million affordable and available rental homes for the lowest-income renters; 
• No state has an adequate supply of affordable rental housing for the lowest-income renters; and  
• Nearly three-quarters of renters with extremely low incomes are severely cost-burdened, spending more than half their income on rent and accounting for nearly 70 percent of all severely cost-burdened renters.  

The report calls for greater federal investments in the preservation and expansion of the affordable housing stock, more Housing Choice Vouchers to bridge the gap between renters’ incomes and rent and emergency assistance for renters who experience unexpected short-term financial shocks.