During the Covid-19 pandemic, Greater Minnesota Housing Fund (GMHF) is surveying owners and managers of approximately 30,000 rental housing units in rural and urban parts of the state monthly to determine tenant inability pay rent due to the Covid-19 pandemic. Data collected is focused primarily on providers of affordable housing, but data for all rental units in respondent portfolios was requested, including market rate units.
Findings identify changes in the inability of tenants to pay rent which will eventually lead to more evictions and homelessness, as well as growing threats to the stability of affordable housing organizations.
KEY FINDINGS
- The percentage of rent paid in April 2021 as of month-end was 91.6% — significantly lower than March 2020.
- The decline in rent paid percentages translates to a more alarming number in terms of households at risk. As of April 2021 month-end, an estimated 52,592 households were unable to pay their rent with an increasing number of households (over 80,000) delaying payment of rent until after mid-month.
- The sample of 29,685 units represents roughly 5% of the total market of 627,000 units, of which 244,530 (39%) are affordable units. The types of units for which data were collected were split between rent assisted and non-assisted units.
The survey will continue to be updated monthly and made available on the GMHF website.
You can download a PDF of each survey here:
2021 Reports
COVID-19 January 2021 Renter Survey
COVID-19 February 2021 Renter Survey
COVID-19 March 2021 Renter Survey
COVID-19 April 2021 Renter Survey
2020 Reports
COVID-19 April 2020 Renter Survey
COVID-19 May 2020 Renter Survey
COVID-19 June 2020 Renter Survey
COVID-19 July 2020 Renter Survey
COVID-19 August 2020 Renter Survey
COVID-19 September 2020 Renter Survey
COVID-19 October 2020 Renter Survey
COVID-19 November 2020 Renter Survey
MULTIPLE INTERVENTIONS ARE NEEDED
While Minnesota renters who fall behind in rent will not be immediately evicted thanks to Governor Walz’ Executive Order (EO) banning evictions, renters are still obligated to catch up with rent obligations. Forbearance of monthly rent payments will mean subsequent rent increases when the eviction moratorium is lifted.
Inability to pay rent puts large numbers of Minnesotans at risk of eviction, and potentially, homelessness. The increased need for government housing assistance underscores the need for major new public investments to begin to re-stabilize the housing system and the economy.
“The issue of rent loss has wide impacts. Today’s tenants who cannot pay rent will be tomorrow’s homeless families and individuals, including children. More tenants desperately need government rental assistance, or they will soon be evicted and homeless. Also, owners of affordable housing cannot maintain safe properties without adequate rental income. Clearly, major new state and federal resources are needed to deliver the needed scale of rent assistance.” said Warren Hanson, Founding President and CEO of Greater Minnesota Housing Fund. As affordable housing development organizations lack sustainable levels of income to manage and maintain properties, the sustainability and stability of affordable housing properties is threatened.
According to Warren Hanson, “The COVID-19 pandemic makes it clear that ‘housing is healthcare,’ for all of us, and that without adequate housing there will be more illness in our communities,”
Of Minnesota’s 120,000 affordable housing units, low income families living in 38,000 rental units are without any form of rental assistance. Rental income declines are clear evidence of tenant inability to pay rent. According to the Minnesota Housing Finance Agency, even before the crisis, more than 1 in 4 – or 572,133 households in Minnesota – pay more than they can afford, and sacrifice food, education or medicine in order to pay rent. For renters who are still without work and lack adequate income supports, eviction within the year is a real threat facing families throughout the state.
