Over 50% of residents in Los Angeles are renters – the highest share in the nation.
Los Angeles, CA, is an iconic American hub of entertainment and technology famous for its movies, luxury, and diverse cuisine. Residents can enjoy Griffith Park, home to the Griffith Observatory and the Los Angeles Zoo, and Runyon Canyon Park, popular for hiking and city views. Other notable landmarks include the Santa Monica Pier, the Getty Center, and the historic Hollywood Walk of Fame, among hundreds of others.
But what’s happening with the rental market? And why do so many Los Angeles residents rent their home? Read on to learn everything you need to know.
53% of Los Angeles residents are renters; 47% are homeowners
53% of Los Angeles residents rent their home – the highest share in the country. 47% of residents own their home. Los Angeles also has the highest rentership rate when averaging over the past five years, at 52%.
A major reason for the high rentership rate is likely the housing market. House prices have been consistently rising across the country, and have been especially unaffordable in coastal metros like Los Angeles and New York. The median sale price for a home in Los Angeles is $1,098,000, far above the national median of $442,000. In fact, house prices in L.A. have risen nearly $350,000 since 2019.
High home prices have priced out many prospective homebuyers, who instead searched for homes in more affordable areas. However, L.A.’s population has continued to grow overall despite the sky-high prices. Domestic migration into the city, a reversal of pandemic-era trends, is a primary cause, alongside legal immigration. Tens of thousands of people moved out of the city during the pandemic because of an unaffordable cost of living.
Those who left in search of better deals often took their budgets to states like Texas and Florida, boosting prices throughout cities in the south. However, there are signs that this trend is cooling down, in part because house prices rose too much.
What’s happening with nationwide rentership rates?
Nationwide, the rentership rate rose 1.9% year over year to 34.4% in the second quarter of 2024, meaning over one-third of Americans are renters. In contrast, homeownership saw a modest 0.6% increase, but remains much more common at 65.6%.
This is the third-straight quarter that rentership outpaced homeownership. The last time this happened was in 2022, when mortgage rates rose to the highest level since 2008. Rentership consistently outpaced homeownership from 2006-2017, as well.
Why are more people renting?
Rentership rates vary widely throughout the country and are generally correlated to house prices – the more expensive houses are, the more people will be pushed into renting.
One reason for the increase in rentership is because homeownership is historically unaffordable and showing little sign of improving. Sale prices are also growing much faster than rents: 4% year over year compared to 0.7%. Nearly two in five renters don’t think they’ll ever own a home.
Another reason is because rental supply has more or less kept up with increasing demand. New apartment construction skyrocketed to record levels during the pandemic and has only now started to slow, helping keep rent price growth low.
The U.S. has also been adding more renter households than homeowner households since 2022. The number of renter households grew at the second-fastest pace since 2015, while the number of homeowner households grew at the slowest pace since 2022.
Which U.S. metros have the highest share of renters?
Rentership rates are the highest in expensive coastal metros like Los Angeles (53%) and San Diego (52%), where house prices regularly surpass $1 million. Prices are also tied to available rental supply.
Metros with the highest share of renters
| Metro | Rentership rate | Homeownership rate |
| Los Angeles, CA | 53.0% | 47.0% |
| San Diego, CA | 52.4% | 47.6% |
| New York, NY | 50.1% | 49.9% |
| Fresno, CA | 49.0% | 51.0% |
| Austin, TX | 46.3% | 53.7% |
| San Jose, CA | 44.8% | 55.2% |
| Honolulu, HI | 42.5% | 57.5% |
| San Francisco, CA | 41.8% | 58.2% |
| Las Vegas, CA | 41.6% | 58.4% |
| San Antonio, TX | 40.9% | 59.1% |
Which U.S. metros have the lowest share of renters?
In particularly affordable metros, like Worcester, MA (23%) and North Port, FL (23%), rentership rates are the lowest. A lack of rental inventory and zoning restrictions could also play a role.
Metros with the lowest share of renters
| Metro | Rentership rate | Homeownership rate |
| Worcester, MA | 23.2% | 76.8% |
| North Port, FL | 23.3% | 76.7% |
| Albany, NY | 25.6% | 74.4% |
| Rochester, NY | 25.7% | 74.3% |
| Syracuse, NY | 26.2% | 73.8% |
| Cape Coral, FL | 26.3% | 73.7% |
| Cincinnati, OH | 26.8% | 73.2% |
| Hartford, CT | 27.2% | 72.8% |
| Richmond, VA | 27.7% | 72.3% |
| Albuquerque, NM | 27.7% | 72.3% |
Methodology
Based on a Redfin analysis of U.S. Census Bureau data for the 75 largest U.S. metros. A renter household is defined as one where the head of the household reports to the Census that they are renting out the property. A homeowner household is one where the head of household reports they own the property.
