Many Americans spend more money on housing than any other expense. And given the way the cost of housing has risen, it's not surprising to learn that lower earners are struggling to keep up.

In October 2024, the cost of shelter was up 4.9% on a year-over-year basis, according to the Consumer Price Index.

So not surprisingly, 74% of Americans earning less than $50,000 per year regularly struggle to afford their mortgage or rent payments, according to a recent Redfin report.

What is shocking, though, are the sacrifices some lower earners are making to keep a roof over their heads. In fact, 24% of Americans earning under $50,000 a year have skipped meals to afford their rent or mortgage payments. And 23% have been forced to sell belongings.

Then there's the 21% of Americans earning less than $50,000 a year who have delayed or skipped medical treatments to free up some money. This indicates that the high cost of housing may actually be detrimental to some people's health.

But if you’re having a tough time covering your housing costs, there are ways to get ahead of that issue before it takes a physical or mental toll.

Why has housing become so unaffordable?

Homeownership has become increasingly unaffordable in the wake of the pandemic. During the first quarter of 2020, the median U.S. home sale price was $329,000. After reaching a peak in the fourth quarter of 2022 of $442,600, the median price now rests at $420,400 as of the third quarter of 2024.

Mortgage rates plunged to record lows during the pandemic as lenders tried to drum up business. An uptick in buyer demand followed, which drove home prices upward.

Then, when mortgage rates started to climb, existing homeowners stayed put to keep the great rates they’d locked in or refinanced to. That caused a gap between buyer demand and housing supply that persists to this day.

In October of 2024, there was a 4.2-month supply of homes on a national scale, according to the National Association of REALTORS. That’s an improvement from a year prior, but still below the six-month supply that’s often needed to meet buyer demand in full. And any time demand outpaces supply, prices tend to rise and stay high until things even out.

Meanwhile, homeownership has become so expensive that more people have turned to rentals. But that increase in demand has given landlords the option to raise rental prices.

Also, rampant inflation over the past few years has driven up the cost of things like property maintenance and utilities. Landlords are no doubt passing these costs onto their tenants in the form of higher rent payments.

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How to make your housing costs more affordable

The median U.S. income is only $1,165 per week or $60,580 per year, which means that some people earning under $50,000 a year may not be so far off from a typical salary.

However, there’s a wide spectrum of incomes in that range. And it’s understandable that those earning well below $50,000 may be resorting to extremes to pay for housing.

If your income is too high to qualify for any type of government assistance, you can try negotiating your rent downward with your landlord if you're a long-term tenant in good standing. Vacancies cost landlords money, and disruptive tenants can be a hassle. Your landlord may be willing to offer a slight discount to avoid having to fill your unit or take on the risk of a new tenant.

If you own a home, you can contact your lender to see if you're able to modify the terms of your mortgage. Altering the terms of your existing loan can make your payments more affordable – for example, by extending your repayment period.

This assumes, of course, that you want to stay in your home. If you’re willing to downsize and have equity in your home, you may be able to sell at a price you’re happy with and swap your higher payments for lower ones.

But if you’re underwater on your mortgage, you can look at pausing your mortgage payments through forbearance, but that would only be a temporary solution.

If moving isn’t an option and you can’t get any wiggle room in your mortgage payments, working a side hustle or picking up additional hours at your main job for extra income may be your best option.

Redfin found that 21% of people earning under $50,000 a year are doing this already to afford their homes, so it’s worth trying until mortgage rates fall further. If that happens, you may be able to refinance to a lower interest rate and more affordable monthly payments.