Rent-to-income ratio and the 30 percent burden rule
The study's rent-to-income ratio and its 30%-plus burdened share answer different questions.
A ratio of two medians
The rent-to-income measure divides median monthly gross rent by median annual household income divided by 12, then expresses the result as a percentage. It compares two area-level medians. The median household income covers households generally, not only the same renters represented in the rent measure.
A share of renter households
The 30%-plus burdened share uses ACS B25070 categories to count renter households whose gross rent is at least 30% of their own household income, excluding not-computed cases. The 50%-plus share uses the same table and denominator approach for the higher threshold.
A ratio of area medians is not the share of renters facing high housing costs. The measures can differ without either being an arithmetic error. Use the burdened share for that household-share question, and do not interpret the ratio as an individual household's budget.
See the rent-burden study and methods.
These are ACS 2020-2024 five-year survey estimates, not current prices or listings. A ZCTA is not a USPS delivery ZIP and can cross county lines. The selected ZCTAs are assigned by largest land-area share; their grouped figures are not complete countywide estimates. Small bases and sampling error can make close comparisons misleading.
See the 132-ZCTA selection method, estimate limits and downloadable datasets.