Have you ever wondered – do most people buy or rent in NYC? Over 8.8 million people live in this city and according to the NYC Comptroller office’s estimate, most of them rent.
NYC Homeownership and Rental Statistics
About 69% of the households in the city rent their homes. Another way of looking at it is from the perspective of the housing units in the city. There are about 3.7 million housing units in the city and about 62.7% of them (2.324 million) are occupied by renters and about 30% (1.109 million) are occupied by owners. The two numbers don’t add up to 100% because of vacancies and gaps in the reported data.
However, whether you look at them from the perspective of households (people) and housing units, it’s clear that most people rent in NYC and tenants might outnumber owners two-to-one in the city. That’s the reverse of the US national ratio, which has more homeowners than renters.
Why Do More People Rent Then Buy in NYC?
There are several reasons for that, starting with affordability. NYC has a significant inventory of rent-stabilized apartments, which makes the cost of renting more predictable and reasonable than the mortgage for many households. It’s connected to the other reason – the cost of buying in NYC, which can be quite significant. So, it might be more practical for most households to rent in NYC (especially in expensive boroughs like Manhattan) than to buy here.
If you are considering the switch from renting to buying, working with a good New York City broker can help you make financially smart decisions and get the most out of your money. But it’s always a good idea to run the numbers before and determine whether buying is even financially feasible.
