Rising rents and a lack of leasing opportunities are sweeping the country, forcing Americans to put more money toward their rent than a down payment for a future home.
Renters paid $478.5 billion in total this year, a 3.8% increase from 2015, according to real estate website Zillow. Combined with increasing home values, heavier lender expectations of credit scores and rising interest rates that will push up monthly mortgage repayments, the American dream of owning a home might seem somewhere off in the distance.
“Saving for a down payment is one of the big challenges for renters,” said Aaron Terrazas, a senior economist at Zillow. The ideal portion of income going toward rent is anywhere between 0% and 30%, he said, though that isn’t always feasible incertain cities. Anything more and the ability to save becomes less likely.
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1 comment:
Illegal (and even legal) immigrants are putting tremendous upward pressure on rents as they grab up the available units.
Landlords are particularly fond of illegals, because they pay their rent and don't complain.
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