BELOIT — Nationally, homeownership rates have been decreasing for a decade since ownership rates peaked in 2004.
The Joint Center for Housing Studies at Harvard University’s report on the State of the Nation’s Housing 2016 found that housing ownership was at a 69 percent peak in 2004 before steadily decreasing to 63.7 percent in 2015.
The study found that in 2014, 85.4 percent of owner households with incomes under $15,000 in the Janesville-Beloit metro area had severe cost burdens, meaning these households were spending more than 30 percent and up to 50 percent of their income on housing. As of 2014, the national number of cost-burdened homeowners stood at 18.5 million, which is down 4.4 million since 2008.
The study also found that 67.6 percent of renters in the Janesville/Beloit area in 2014 had severe cost burdens. Nationally, the number of renters with severe burdens jumped by 2.1 million to a record 11.4 million.
With numbers like these, Lizz Casey, deputy director for NeighborWorks Blackhawk Region, said it’s important for people to know the benefits of homeownership, especially with June being National Homeownership Month.
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