Housing burden is an important measure of a family’s financial health. Spending too much of their monthly income on rent or mortgage will frustrate a family’s ability to build long-term wealth.
In recent years many families around NYC have spent as much as 50-60% of their monthly income on rent or mortgage, making housing a very burdensome obligation for many New Yorkers. State and local lawmakers have wrestled to address this challenge through affordable housing programs, offering tax incentives to housing developers to keep rents at affordable levels.
The challenge is a complex and ever-evolving one, but it has also created opportunities for real estate investors, home owners, and even first-time home buyers who do their homework. Most important is for each individual and family to pay attention to their own housing burden percentage and to take practical steps to optimize it for long-term wealth building.