The ability to build personal wealth—defined as one’s savings and assets minus debts—is a central component of financial security and well-being for families across all income levels. Renters make up one-third of U.S. households (and counting), yet hold only 5 percent of total household wealth nationally.
Higher interest rates and record-high housing cost burdens have exacerbated the issue, making the pursuit of homeownership and wealth-building all the more challenging. Housing affordability impacts Americans across the income spectrum and according to the National Low Income Housing Coalition, no state in the U.S. has an adequate supply of affordable rental housing for its lowest-income renters. For the benefit of both individual households and the broader economy, renters need solutions that stabilize housing costs and expand opportunities to build wealth.
Join the Aspen Institute Financial Security Program on January 21, 2025, at 10 a.m. ET to explore recent data on renters’ current wealth and financial well-being and discuss varying scalable solutions to reduce housing costs and increase asset ownership in the U.S.
