"One way Californians cope with pricey housing is by squeezing more than the typical number of people into their living spaces. My trusty spreadsheet identified this affordability twist by analyzing 2024 Census Bureau housing details for the 50 states and the District of Columbia. These latest figures detail how many people live in the average housing unit and how much they pay."
"Let's start with renters. Last year, California had 2.63 people living in the average rental. That's 21% above the 2.17 nationwide average. Only Hawaii had more densely populated rentals with 2.64 residents. No. 3 was Nevada at 2.47, followed by Utah at 2.44, and Florida at 2.43. Texas was No. 8 at 2.35. The fewest folks per rental were in Vermont at 1.79, Maine at 1.82, North Dakota at 1.83, D.C. at 1.86, and South Dakota at 1.9."
"It's not much of a surprise when California's median costs for all renters ran $2,104 a month - that's 60% above the nation's $1,319 and the largest expense among the states. Plus, 27% pay 50% or more of their incomes for rent. But don't forget other contributors to density in all forms of housing include younger populations (think children), size of residences (think apartments vs. houses), locale (think urban vs. rural living) and cultural preferences (think multigenerational arrangements)."
California renters averaged 2.63 people per unit in 2024, about 21% above the 2.17 national average and second only to Hawaii. States such as Nevada, Utah, Florida and Texas also showed elevated rental densities, while Vermont, Maine, North Dakota, D.C. and South Dakota had the lowest. Median rent in California was $2,104 monthly, roughly 60% above the $1,319 national median, and 27% of renters paid half or more of their income for rent. California homeowners averaged 2.92 people per owner-occupied unit, third-highest nationally, and typical homeowner costs were about $2,280 monthly, roughly 70% above the $1,340 national median.
Read at The Mercury News
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