According to a recent Point2Homes study, renters in several Connecticut metro areas are increasingly opting for longer term renting of 3-bedroom homes, and the rates of short-term rentals overall have declined. According to study authors, these findings are consistent with the national trend, and reflect the increased lack of affordability of homes for young families.
“Renters are settling in for the long haul,” read the study. “As soaring home prices and tight inventory keep many on the sidelines, renters in need of more space and privacy are making house rentals their long-term homes.”
Housing has been a hot-button issue nationwide and Connecticut is no exception. The issue of housing affordability and availability has been the target of numerous lawmaker bills this session, in an attempt to fill a housing demand gap.
The study analyzed housing tenure and number of bedroom statistics from 2017 to 2022 among the nation’s 75 most populous metro areas. It found that 47% of renters who live in houses rent three bedroom houses. The study found that approximately 44% of Hartford area single-family renters, 37% of Bridgeport area single-family renters and 38% of New Haven area single-family renters are all opting for three-bedroom houses.
The study asserted that both remote work and the high cost to purchasing a home have contributed to this trend.
“Owing mostly to renters’ inability to get on the property ladder, the preference for spacious, three-bedroom houses for rent is due to the post-pandemic shift in remote work trends,” read the study. “No matter where they live, renters need larger homes to be able to work — and are becoming increasingly willing to rent them if buying is out of reach.”
The study also noted that renters aren’t only opting for larger homes, but for longer tenures; of the nation’s 75 largest metro areas, the percentage of renters who move within a year has decreased in all but four. Nationally, the number of single-family home renters that moved in less than a year has decreased on average by 4.5%. The study attributed this to the additional costs and difficulties associated with moving rentals.
“Buying a home is hard, but so is finding a new rental, signing a new lease, covering all the moving costs and actually moving,” read the study. “For this reason, renters are increasingly preferring to stay within a comfort zone where they’ve become accustomed to the community, the amenities and the day-to-day routine.”
Bridgeport has seen the greatest stabilization of its single-family rental market of any metro area in the state, with the study finding a 7.1% reduction of such renters that have moved out in less than a year. The study found that in 2017, over a quarter of Bridgeport’s single-family home renters, 26.6%, moved in under a year. As of 2022, that number has decreased to 19.5%. Of the additional 7.1% of renters that have stayed longer than a year, 2.2% of them have stayed anywhere from one to four years in the same home, and 4.9% have stayed 5 years or more.
Hartford and New Haven both followed the national trend, but to a lesser extent. Hartford saw a 3.6% decrease of single-family renters moving in less than a year, and New Haven saw 3.8% of single-family renters moving in less than a year.
Hartford is distinct as being the only Connecticut metro area in which the number of 10-year plus single-family renters has decreased, with a decrease of 1.9%. This might indicate either an increased number of renters leaving the Hartford area, or an increased number of long term renters purchasing homes. According to Zillow, Hartford is projected to be the fourth hottest housing market in the country this year.
The data used in this study was procured from the Integrated Public Use Microdata Series, a dataset published by the University of Minnesota’s Institute for Social Research and Data Innovation, which collects survey and census data from around the world.
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