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MortgagePoint » Your Trusted Source for Mortgage Banking and Servicing News 78 November 2023 J O U R N A L renters have to share their space with roommates or family members to afford the sky-high costs of living and housing. Thus, unsurprisingly, 10 of the top 20 metros where it's hardest to rent alone are located in the Golden State. First, with solo renters representing just 9% of all people renting in San Jose, Californa, those seeking privacy here in Silicon Valley's largest city have an average income of $93,288. Renters who live alone make 37% more than the average renter here. In net figures, that's a difference of $29,376 per year or $2,448 per month. By comparison, in San Jose, those living with roommates or family in rented units have an average income of $63,912. Meanwhile, lone renters in Santa Barbara—who make up 9% of the metro's population of renters—have an annual income of $61,912, which is about 42% higher than what the average renter makes ($36,456 per year). And, in Salinas, Califor- nia, solo renters have an average income of $56,834, which is about 57% more than what the average renter makes per year. Similarly, in Los Angeles, those rent- ing alone make up 11% of all apartment dwellers in the area and have an annual income of $54,156, while the average rent- er makes $36,181 per year. In other words, to afford to rent by yourself in the City of Angels, you need to make an extra $17,975 per year or around $1,500 per month. By comparison, renting alone in San Francisco requires a higher income than in Los Angeles ($73,329, on average). That's approximately 25% higher than the average renter's income in the area. MILLIONS OF HOMES SIT VACANT ACROSS THE LARGEST U.S. METROS A new LendingTree study revealed that a lack of available housing inventory has helped keep housing costs high throughout many of the nation's biggest cities, as nearly 5.5 million homes sit vacant across the nation's largest metro areas. Vacant homes can be—and usually are—unoccupied for many reasons be- yond being uninhabitable. For example, a house can be vacant because it's still on the market to be sold or rented or because it's a vacation home not being used. LendingTree analyzed the latest U.S. Census Bureau American Community Sur- vey data to rank the nation's 50 largest met- ros by their shares of unoccupied homes. While vacancy rates can vary signifi- cantly, tens of thousands of housing units sit vacant in each of the metros featured in LendingTree's study. » An estimated 5,475,687 housing units are vacant across the nation's 50 largest metros. The average vacancy rate across these 50 metros is 7.22%. » New Orleans, Miami, and Tampa, Flor- ida, have the highest vacancy rates. The vacancy rates in these metros are 13.88%, 12.65%, and 12.15%, respectively. In these three metros, more than 600,000 hous- ing units are vacant. » Vacancy rates are lowest in Minneap- olis, Austin, Texas, and Washington, D.C. At 4.51%, 4.57%, and 4.98% Minne- apolis, Austin, and D.C. are the only metros in our study with vacancy rates below 5.00%. » Housing units commonly sit empty because they're waiting to be rented, only used for part of the year, or un- dergoing repairs and/or renovations. On average, 26.61% of the vacant hous- ing units across the nation's 50 largest metros are empty because they're for rent. An average of 17.04% are vacant because they're only used part-time, while an average of 7.98% are empty because they're being repaired or reno- vated. Just because a unit is unused doesn't mean it's unwanted or it'll remain empty for long. Top 10 Metros With the Highest Vacancy Rates: » New Orleans » Miami » Tampa, Florida » Birmingham, Alabama » Riverside, California » Pittsburgh » Las Vegas » Memphis, Tennessee » Raleigh, North Carolina » Oklahoma City Top 10 Metros With the Lowest Vacancy Rates: Minneapolis » Austin, Texas » Washington, D.C. » Portland, Oregon » Denver » Richmond, Virginia » Boston » Philadelphia » Seattle » San Jose, California Vacancy Rates and High Home Prices According to LendingTree experts, in a simplified version of the housing market, vacancy rates should have a strong inverse relationship to home and rent prices. For example, high vacancy rates should signify a lack of demand from homebuyers and or renters, resulting in a larger supply of homes on the market and lower prices. The opposite should also be true where a low vacancy rate signifies strong demand, less supply, and higher prices. With such high housing prices, it may seem strange to some that so many homes in the United States' largest met- ros are sitting empty. LGBTQ+ RENTERS DISCLOSE THEIR FINANCIAL BARRIERS TO HOMEOWNERSHIP I n a new Redfin survey, research showed that LGBTQ+ renters are more likely to face financial barriers to homeownership than non-LGBTQ+ renters. Research finds that nearly one-quar- ter of LGBTQ+ renters (23.5%) said they're unlikely to buy a home in the future due to lack of financial support from family or friends, compared with 14% of non- LGBTQ+ renters—the largest gap among the barriers respondents choose from. LGBTQ+ renters were also more likely