More Older Renters in US

WASHINGTON (AP) - A new report finds the housing bust and the surge in foreclosures that followed has led to a fundamental shift in the makeup of renters, nearly 51 percent of whom are now older than 40.

The report from Harvard University's Joint Center for Housing Studies also says affordability problems are mounting as rents rise faster than wages, while apartment construction increasingly targets tenants with six-figure incomes.

A decade ago when the housing bubble peaked in 2005, 47 percent of renters — or 16.4 million households — were older than 40.

In the meantime, demand for rentals has outpaced supply and caused prices to rise.

Rents increased 7 percent between 2001 and 2014 while incomes fell 9 percent.

The result is that a larger number of Americans must devote more than 30 percent of their income to rent, a level considered financially burdensome.