Nearly half of N.J. renters are paying more than they should. See latest data.

Nearly half of all New Jersey renters are spending too much money on rent, according to the latest Census data.
Forty-eight percent of renters in the Garden State spend more than 30% of their income on rent, new American Community Survey data published by the Census shows.
Households are considered “rent burdened” when their rent is more than one-third of their income, according to the Department of Housing and Urban Development definition.
The Census did not collect data on how many renters spend more than half their paychecks on rent, which would make them “severely” rent burdened.
Not being able to find and secure affordable housing can be a “systemic issue” for some renters, Robert Scott, a real estate professor at Monmouth University told NJ Advance Media.
“We’re facing this low supply of housing, as well as rental properties right now, and that’s just putting additional pressure on prices, driving things up,” Scott said.
Things could be worse.
“The only thing sort of saving us is the economy across the state is reasonably strong, and so people are employed, and they have jobs, and they in general are able to cover their expenses,” Scott said.
New Jersey’s high rental prices mirror national trends. Nationwide, half of all renters spend more than one-third of their income on rent, the Census data shows.
Nationally, Black renters were the most likely to have too-high rents, with 56.2% reported being rent burdened. Asian renters were the least likely, at 43.4%.
The most recently available New Jersey data looked at the 16 largest towns and cities, including Newark, Edison, and Lakewood.
In Lakewood, more than 60% of renters spend too much on rent, the highest percentage of the towns included. Edison had the lowest percent of rent burdened residents, at just over 35%. (See all 16 towns in the chart below).
Lower income residents are more likely to spend disproportionally on their rent. Only 13% of renters with incomes higher than $75,000 spend more than a third of their paychecks on rent. That number balloons to more than 80% for renters making $50,000 or less.
There might be some level of voluntarily overspending by some renters, but at the lower end of the economic spectrum the issue is a lack of available affordable housing, Scott said.
The median family income in New Jersey was $121,944 in 2023, according to Census data. Non-family households, like roommates or unmarried partners, had a median income of $58,033.
There are more than 1.28 million rental units statewide, according to Census data. About 305,000 renters spend less than 20% of their income on rent. Another 289,000 residents spend between 20-29% of their income on rent.
Can’t see the chart? Click here.
Thank you for relying on us to provide the journalism you can trust. Please consider supporting NJ.com with a subscription.
Katie Kausch may be reached at [email protected]. Follow her on Twitter @KatieKausch.