Rent Payments Hit 89 Percent

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Nearly 90 percent of renters in the U.S. have paid full or partial rent as of April 19, according to just-released data from the National Multifamily Housing Council. The figure reflects a 5 percent increase from April 12.

The report, which pulled data from 11.5 million apartments units across the country, found that by April 19, 89 percent of renter households had made either full or partial rent payments. Looking at historical numbers, NMHC found that 93 percent of renters made full or partial payments from April 1, 2019 to April 19, 2019, while 93 percent of renters made payments between March 1, 2020 and March 12, 2020.

Compared to the same time last month, the numbers show a payment rate of 95 percent. According to NMHC, the data was culled from market-rate rental properties that vary widely by size, type and average rental price.

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The data is part of the newly launched NMHC Rent Payment Tracker, an initiative that partners with industry firms Entrata, MRI Software, RealPage, ResMan and Yardi. NMHC will release updated data from the tracker once a week for the length of COVID-19 outbreak.

Last week’s report, the second in the series, found that 84 percent of renters made their rent payment by April 12. The data was culled from five industry firms and reflects more than 13.4 million units across the country.

NMHC President Doug Bibby called the numbers “encouraging” but said elected officials need to do more to support renters across the U.S. who are struggling.

“(Residents) financial security is unclear as many may not qualify for federal relief, while others are drawing down savings and facing greater financial challenges, including higher health care costs,” Bibby said in prepared remarks. “For that reason, lawmakers need to act now to enact a direct renter assistance program.”  

NMHC and other groups within the multifamily industry have continued to call for more action from legislators and the federal government to assist both owners and renters. In a joint announcement earlier this month, NAA and NMHC called for:

• Creating an Emergency Rental Assistance Program to help renters who don’t currently receive federal rental subsidies but are now struggling to cover housing costs because of the coronavirus crisis;
• Align the timelines of mortgage forbearance and eviction provisions;
• Expand the SBA Paycheck Protection Program to include multifamily and student housing firms so they can protect their employees and operations;
• Provide critical tax relief for multifamily property owners;
• Enact critical infrastructure programs to support economic recovery.