What does this measure?
The proportion of household income that goes toward monthly rent, utilities and fuel, calculated by dividing median rent by median household income for renters.
Why is this important?
This figure indicates how affordable housing is for renters. The federal Housing and Urban Development Department guideline for affordability is that rent should consume no more than 30% of household income.
How does our county compare?
In 2019-23, Lancaster County renters spent 28% of their income on rent, slightly below the state and nation (at 30% and 31%, respectively). The proportion in Lancaster decreased 4 percentage points since 2009-13, a decrease that is similar to Pennsylvania and the nation (3 and 2 points, respectively).
Renting was somewhat less affordable for residents in the City of Lancaster, where renters spent 30% of their income on rent in 2019-23, down 11 percentage points since 2009-13.
Surrounding counties have similar rates to Lancaster, with Berks and Chester (both at 30%), York and Dauphin (both at 29%), and Lebanon and Cumberland (27% and 26% respectively).
Notes about the data
Multiyear figures are from the Census Bureau's American Community Survey. The bureau combined five years of responses to the survey to provide estimates for smaller geographic areas and increase the precision of its estimates. The survey provides data on characteristics of the population that used to be collected only during the decennial census. Data for this indicator are released annually in December.
| 2009-13 | 2014-18 | 2019-23 | |||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pennsylvania | 33% | 32% | 30% | ||||||||||||||||
| Lancaster County | 32% | 30% | 28% | ||||||||||||||||
| Lancaster City | 41% | 35% | 30% | ||||||||||||||||
| Lancaster County School Districts | |||||||||||||||||||
| Lancaster County Boroughs | |||||||||||||||||||
| Lancaster County Townships | |||||||||||||||||||
| Berks County | 34% | 33% | 30% | ||||||||||||||||
| Chester County | 31% | 29% | 30% | ||||||||||||||||
| Cumberland County | 28% | 28% | 26% | ||||||||||||||||
| Dauphin County | 30% | 30% | 29% | ||||||||||||||||
| Lebanon County | 27% | 27% | 27% | ||||||||||||||||
| York County | 30% | 31% | 29% | ||||||||||||||||
Notes: Rent considered affordable if less than 30% of income. Multiyear results are from rolling American Community Survey. * Margin of error between 20% & 35% of estimate; ** margin of error between 35% & 50%; *** margin of error greater than 50%.
