Boston homeownership has increased, but city still overwhelmingly one of renters

The share of owner-occupied households in Boston inched upward to 35.2 percent in 2017, from 32.5 percent in 2010, according to a new report from the Boston Planning and Development Agency Research Division.

The city, then, remains one overwhelmingly of renter households. And, as the same report also made clear, the rent those households are paying has gone up: The gross monthly rent was $1,541 in Boston in 2017, up from $1,386 in 2010 (in 2017 dollars).

What’s more, the gross monthly rent rose despite the building of 15,000 housing units from 2010 to 2017. (It looks like it will take a lot more housing to really dent things.)

At the same time, the BPDA study found that the average size of a Boston household was similar whether owner- or tenant-occupied (see chart below). The report also found that Boston, which added more than 60,000 residents from 2010 to 2017, has gotten more demographically diverse.

• Demographic trends in Boston 2010-2017 [BPDA]
• Boston’s housing-construction effort: Is it already too late? [Curbed Boston]
• Boston demographics report shows population growth, diversification since 2010 [Curbed Boston]