How Has Rentership Changed from 2000 to 2024?

Over the last 25 years, renting trends in the U.S. and Pennsylvania have fluctuated. Here are some key takeaways from Point2Home’s report, “A Quarter-Century in Renting.” 

Rentership in 2000 vs. 2024 

In 2000, the rentership rate was 33.80% – nearly identical to 2024’s rate of 34.73%, according to Point2. 

Despite the close rates, approximately 10.4 million new renter households have been added since 2000, accounting for a 29.3% increase. In comparison, homeownership only saw a 24% increase.  

“Renting is becoming the more common housing option in some markets – especially in those where affordability and flexibility outweigh the appeal of ownership, from renter-dominated suburbs to long-established urban renter hubs,” Point2 notes. 

Rentership Through the Years 

While looking at rentership from 2000 to 2024, Point2 found that trends have mirrored U.S. economic cycles and fluctuated accordingly. 

• Early to mid-2000s: The rentership rate dipped as more people pursued the American Dream of homeownership. The national homeownership rate peaked in 2006 at 67.3%, when the rentership rate was 33.1%.
• 2008-2012: The Great Recession caused the housing bubble to burst in 2007, resulting in millions of Americans losing their homes to foreclosure. The effects were seen for years after, as many former owners turned to renting. In 2012, the homeownership rate was 63.9%, and the rentership rate was 36.1%. 
• 2013-2019: Homeownership began to recover, but the rate never returned to its early-2000s highs. By 2015, a significant 37% of Americans were renting. In 2019, the homeownership rate stabilized more and reached 64.1%, but rentership remained prevalent at 35.9%.  
• 2020 and beyond: Point2 notes that for a brief period during the pandemic, homeownership ticked upward as the demand for more spacious homes and stability surged. By 2022, that momentum reversed, as mortgage rates climbed, inventory remained tight and prices stayed high.  

Fewer Renters in Pennsylvania 

Since 2000, the rentership rate in Pennsylvania has increased slightly. The rentership rate in 2000 was 28.69%, compared to 30.73% in 2024. 

However, it is notable that from 2000-2024, Pennsylvania’s rentership rate remained consistently below the national rentership rate. Even during points of fluctuation, like the Great Recession and the post-pandemic years, Pennsylvania saw fewer renters and more owners. When the rentership rate peaked nationally in 2015 at 36.97%, it was only 31.28% in Pennsylvania. In 2023, when the national rate was 34.76%, Pennsylvania’s was 30.55%. 

Although many factors contribute to rentership rates and trends nationwide, Pennsylvania’s consistently lower-than-national rates suggest that the commonwealth is a more affordable location than some others. This relative affordability offers homebuyers in Pennsylvania more opportunities for attainable long-term stability and growth.