Renter-Occupied Housing
Housing units in a ZIP code occupied by tenants who pay rent, including apartments, rented houses, and other leased dwelling units.
Renter-occupied housing units represent the portion of occupied housing where the occupants do not own the property. The national rental rate is approximately 35%, but in dense urban ZIP codes, it can exceed 90%. The Census Bureau reports renter data including gross rent (contract rent plus utilities), rent as a percentage of household income, and year the household moved in.
A key metric derived from renter data is rent burden — the percentage of renters spending more than 30% of their income on rent. In high-cost ZIP codes, rent burden can affect more than half of renting households.
Renter-occupied housing data is used in affordable housing policy, market analysis for apartment developers, tenant screening services, and community needs assessments.