THE AFFORDABILITY OF URBAN AND RURAL RENTAL HOUSING

This report compares rent-to-income ratios for metropolitan and nonmetropolitan rental households, controlling for income and other demographic characteristics. At the mean income level of approximately $12,000 for the sample, metro households pay approximately 4.5 percent more of their income on rent than do nonmetro renters of similar demographic characteristics. This differential falls to 3.3 percent after one adjusts for differences in urban/rural purchasing power, and it falls to 1.9 percent after one also controls for the quantity of housing consumed. This 1.9-percent rent-toincome differential results solely from differences in the price of housing in metro versus nonmetro areas