As Rental Costs Rise, a Key Form of Housing Assistance Is Falling Behind

For the past several years, rising rental costs have drastically outpaced household income nationwide, and that run-up in rents has weakened the value of a key form of housing assistance. Across all U.S. metros in 2021, 19 million households met the criteria for Housing Choice Voucher eligibility, but only 2 million vouchers were available, Zillow reports.

The need for more vouchers was already a concern pre-pandemic as funding limits left large portions of qualifying households without rental assistance, and in a housing boom that sent rental costs significantly higher, voucher values fell even further behind.

Since the start of the pandemic the nation’s typical rent – as measured by the Zillow Observed Rental Index (ZORI) – has increased by 26%, whereas average earnings have risen by 16% during that same period. This deviation between rent and income growth has caused more renter households to become rent burdened, exacerbating the need for housing assistance for many households.

Read more