Renters in Philadelphia are struggling to keep up with rising costs.
The Philadelphia metropolitan area is one of the least affordable in the country for apartment renters based on their incomes, according to a recent report.
The report ranked Philadelphia ninth-least affordable in its list of 44 major metros. The median apartment cost in the last quarter of 2024 was $1,865 per month. The annual household income needed to comfortably afford that rent was $74,600. In 2024, the typical household in the region only made $58,970.
Riquan King, director of advocacy at the Philadelphia-based Tenant Union Representative Network, said, “It really isn’t about whether or not anyone in this country can afford to live in Philly. It’s about whether Philadelphians can live in Philly.”
The income needed to afford the national median rent of $1,592 in 2024 was $63,680. The typical renter income in 2024 was only $54,752, which was almost $9,000 less than needed to comfortably afford the national median rent.
Analysts that compiled the report considered apartments affordable if households spent no more than 30% of their income on rent.
Renters in Philadelphia are struggling to afford housing. Kind said that when it comes to housing affordability, “what we’re really talking about is, do you have the ability to keep a roof over your head and pay for all the other components of life?”
Renters regularly approach the Tenant Union Representative Network for help because they cannot find a home that is both large enough for their family and affordable.
King said, “Rarely do you find both. And sometimes you don’t find either.”
The Philadelphia Coalition for Affordable Communities says it is time for the city to rethink how it uses its housing funds. Its community-driven initiative is asking the city to spend more of those funds on the lowest-income households.
