The housing squeeze is quietly reshaping where Americans can live and work

Finding an affordable place to live right now is a challenge—but it’s one that different groups of Americans are grappling with in a variety of ways.

A new report from Realtor.com explores the distinct barriers to affordable housing that renters face in an economy that has many budgets stretched thin. In the analysis, which draws on 2024 surveys of the country’s 100 biggest metro areas, Realtor.com found three distinct groups emerge in the U.S. rental market data: young renters, family renters, and long-term renters.