To afford the monthly rental payments, people hoping to rent an apartment in the United States would need to earn more than $63,000.
That is according to a new report from real estate website Redfin, which calculated the salary needed to comfortably afford a rental with a median asking price of $1,592.
The report noted that the average income needed to afford an apartment with an asking price of $1,700 is down 0.4% from the same period in 2024 and 6.4% from August 2022, when Americans were required to earn at least $68,000. This is also the lowest income needed since at least March 2022.
What Does It Mean For Renters?
The falling income threshold and median asking price points to a better market for renters. That said, the typical renter still earns $8,928 less than the income needed to afford a median-priced apartment.
For perspective, renters have an estimated median income of $54,752 as of last year. That is already up 5.3% from the median income in 2023 and 35.2% from 2019, before the COVID-19 pandemic.
Read more: US Developers Building Housing in Abandoned Shopping Malls To Address Shortage in the Market
Where Are Rents Affordable?
Of the 44 major metropolitan areas analyzed, rent was the most affordable in Austin, Texas. The median asking rent in the metro area was $1,394. To afford it, renters in Austin would need to earn $55,760, which is 25.14% less than the median income of $69,781.
Following Austin is Houston, where the median asking rent is $1,23,9, and the income needed is $49,560. That is 17.61% less than the median renter income in the area.
Third on the list is Dalla, with a median asking price of $1,460. To afford the monthly payments, renters need to earn $58,400, which is 10.30% less than the median renter income in the metro area.
On the other end of the spectrum, renters in Providence, Rhode Island, earn a median salary of $50,408. That is 41.25% less than the $85,800 they need to afford a median rental with an asking price of $2,145.
