A recent survey shows missed housing payments jumped in May, showing that 31 percent failed to make their full housing payment compared to 24 percent in April, Apartment List says in the survey.
“Our May survey paints an even more distressing picture than the data we collected in April. The share of housing payments made in full during the first week of the month fell by seven percentage points, from the 76 percent in April to 69 percent in May,” Apartment List says in the survey report.
“The number of Americans unable to make any first-week housing payments shot up by over 80 percent. Fortunately, we continue to see landlords and lenders agreeing to concessions to arrive at alternative arrangements in light of widespread income loss.
“Also. seven percent of mortgage loans are now in forbearance, and 10 percent of renters state that their landlord or property manager proactively lowered their May rent. Forty percent of renters who have not paid their May rent report that they have agreed to terms for reduced or deferred rent with their landlord,” the report says.
Key findings from the missed housing payments report:
- 22 percent of respondents have not yet made a housing payment for May, and an additional nine percent have made only a partial payment. Missed payments remain common for renters and homeowners alike.
- More than half of households that couldn’t pay their April bill on time eventually closed the gap with late payments. By the end of the month, just nine percent of Americans left a portion of their April rent or mortgage unpaid.
- Working from home continues to be a key factor in affording rent or mortgage. Remote workers had the lowest May delinquency rate (20 percent) among any group surveyed.
- Despite May’s missed payments, optimism is improving. This month, a greater share of respondents said they are confident they will be able to continue affording housing through June, despite shelter-in-place restrictions.
“While it’s certainly promising that many missed April payments were made up over the course of the month, we see evidence that renters and homeowners who struggled last month are continuing to have difficulty.
“In fact, financial strain is spreading even to those that made their April payment in full. For those who made their April payment but needed extra time to do so, 70 percent were unable to make a full housing payment in early May. And for those who were not able to complete their April payments, the May non-payment rate skyrockets to 92 percent.
“May is proving to be a challenging month even for those who were in a good financial position in April,” the report says.
April Rent Collection Better Than Expected; May is a Concern
