A rising tide lifts all homes? Housing consumption trends for low-income households since the 1980s

• 成果类型: Article
• 署名作者: Hembre, Erik; Collins, J. Michael; Wylde, Samuel
• 署名单位: Federal Reserve System - USA; Federal Reserve Bank - Minneapolis; University of Wisconsin System; University of Wisconsin Madison; University of Illinois System; University of Illinois Chicago; University of Illinois Chicago Hospital
• 刊物名称: JOURNAL OF PUBLIC ECONOMICS
• ISSN/ISSBN: 0047-2727
• DOI: 10.1016/j.jpubeco.2024.105102
• 发表日期: 2024
• 关键词: consumption inequality; Housing quality; Safety net; poverty

摘要

This study analyzes patterns of housing consumption and expenditures among low-income households since 1985. For households in the bottom income quintile, real monthly housing expenditures have risen from $605 to $1,045. However, these increased expenditures partially reflect housing quantity improvements, including more square footage, more rooms, and larger lot sizes. The data also show a marked improvement in housing quality, such as fewer sagging roofs, broken appliances, rodents, and peeling paint. The housing quality for lowincome households improved across all 35 indicators we can measure. These quality improvements equate to between a 34 to 43 percent increase in housing consumption and suggest that a typical low-income household in 2021 experiences housing quality equivalent to the average national household in 1985. Though relative housing consumption has remained similar, this rising tideof housing may have additional benefits for the well-being of families and children living in better housing.