Fewer renters are missing rent payments than a year ago, but more of them are skipping other bills and cutting back on spending to make it happen, according to a new report from the Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia that offers a detailed look at the financial pressures facing that population of consumers.
The report, based on the Philadelphia Fed’s quarterly Labor, Income, Finances, and Expectations (LIFE) Survey, found that about one in five renters were unable to make their rent payments on time or in full during the prior three months as of January 2026, down from roughly one-quarter in late 2024 and early 2025. Eviction concerns declined over the same period.
The more telling numbers may be what renters are doing to stay current. Twenty-six percent of renters reported paying less or skipping other debts or monthly bills in the past 12 months, up 4.6 percentage points from a year earlier and well above the 16.9% of homeowners with mortgages who said the same. Nearly two-thirds of renters cut back on discretionary or essential spending, a 6.4 percentage point increase. Renters were the only housing group to show meaningful year-over-year increases in either coping strategy.
Some segments are under acute stress. Among renters with children at home, the share skipping debts or bills jumped 12.8 percentage points to 34.8%. Nearly 40% of renters with student loans reported skipping payments, and 73% of that group cut spending. Renters who missed a rent payment in the prior three months were also far more likely to skip other obligations, with 47.1% doing so.
The affordability picture remains grim. The Philadelphia Fed estimates 53.5% of renters are rent burdened, spending more than 30% of gross income on rent, and 27.7% are severely burdened, spending more than half. About 12% of all renters have consistently reported missing payments due to a lack of funds they expect to persist.
Homeownership is increasingly off the table. Just 6.4% of renters said they planned to take out a mortgage in the next six months, down from 15.2% a year earlier. The steepest declines came from the groups most likely to buy, including young adults, higher earners, parents, and stock owners. The researchers found the pullback was not explained by local home prices or job losses, but rather by declining consumer confidence and perceptions of financial security.
