Americans Skipping Meals to Afford Housing Under Biden

(DCNF)—A major real estate company released a survey on Friday which found that renters and homeowners are significantly reducing their quality of life to afford housing under President Joe Biden.

Nearly one in five homeowners and renters reported skipping meals to afford housing in Biden’s economy, according to a new survey conducted by Redfin. The median asking rental price increased from less than $1,700 when Biden took office in January 2021 to nearly $2,000 as of February, according to Redfin’s data.

While rent prices jumped last month, they’re relatively stable compared to the past two years.

The median asking rent in February was $73 below the record high set in August 2022, but was still $387 higher than it was in February 2020, prior to the pandemic. pic.twitter.com/cAgVjW9xOe

— Redfin (@Redfin) March 21, 2024

Americans made other sacrifices to stay in their homes, with 20.7% reporting working more hours, 20.6% saying they have sold their belongings, more than one in six having dipped into retirement savings and 15.6% reporting that they’re putting off medical care to afford housing payments.

As of February, the median household earned $30,000 less than it would need to afford the median home in the United States, according to Redfin. When Biden took office in 2021, the median household earned thousands more than would be required to afford the median home.

The median home in the United States cost $417,700 as of the fourth quarter of 2023, according to the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. Some states, like California, are even more expensive, with the median costing $675,667 as of January, according to Zillow.

In May 2022, the Biden administration announced an action plan intended to increase the supply of housing and reduce the burden of rent on Americans.

As interest rates remain high and the nation faces a shortage of construction workers, however, the number of new homes being built declined between 2022 and 2023, according to Census Bureau data.

Thousands of construction workers are tied up in green transportation projects pushed by the Biden administration.

Experts are concerned that Biden’s spending, particularly his recent proposed budget, may increase inflation, further increasing the cost of living for Americans.

As of April 6, an average of 57.8% of Americans disapproved of Biden’s handling of the economy, according to ReaClear’s aggregation of survey data. By contrast, 68% of Americans recall the economy being better under former President Donald Trump, according to a poll released by CBS News in March.

The White House did not immediately respond to the Daily Caller News Foundation’s request for comment.

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