RentCafe, a trusted source for information on apartment rental, has released a new report highlighting how some neighborhoods in America have radically changed their structure in the last 10 years.

The report

Also noting a 55-year high in rental figures, the report pinpoints the fastest-growing renter zip codes, the zip codes that became the majority of renters, as well as the top renter hotspots.

Although rent is generally identified as a circumstantial and temporary phenomenon, during the last decade a third of tenants have expressed that it is a matter of choice, a decision that has generated a scenario in which, between 2010 and 2020, the number of renters surpassed that of owners.

For this report, the mix of renters and homeowners for each zip code was analyzed using the most recent data from the U.S. Census Bureau.

Among the most important results, it was found that 101 zip codes changed to the most renters in the last 10 years. With the addition of these communities, renters represent the majority population in 41% or 632 of the 1,553 ZIP codes analyzed in the 50 largest U.S. cities.

According to the most recent estimates from the U.S. Census, the number of renters increased by 12% between 2011 and 2020, three times faster than the 4% increase in homeowners.

RentCafe also ranked all 101 zip codes by percentage of change to get a clearer picture of where the biggest changes in the owner versus renter mix occurred.

Philadelphia case

Philadelphia, PA, tops the list with the most neighborhoods whose supply is especially focused on rent, with a total of seven zip codes. Memphis, TN, and Houston, TX, follow the city of brotherly love with six codes each.

Through this transformation over the past 10 years, Philadelphia has seven zip codes that have become dominant tenants, more than any other major U.S. city.

Additionally, the city features nine neighborhoods located among the fastest growing renter zip codes in the nation.

The zip code that opens the list of new areas with the most renters in Philadelphia is 19106, which is downtown and saw a 47.5% increase in renters. It is followed by the 19130 (Fairmount District), and 19133 (Fairhill) zip codes, which have become the newest renter's havens in Philadelphia.

For its part, the neighborhood of Kingsessing (19143) concentrates the largest number of tenants, with a number close to 32,104.

These are the fastest growing renter zip codes in Philadelphia:

• The Kensington neighborhood (19123), home to 11,232 residents, is where the renter population has grown the fastest, clocking in at 75% in the last ten years.
• Belmont (19104) is among the hottest areas for renters, with 16 other zip codes seeing a boom in renter population.
• With nearly 29,000 residents renting, the 19104 zip code has the highest share of renters (76.1%) in Philadelphia. Zip codes 19107 and 19102 follow closely behind.

To learn more about the report and figures for other major cities, click here.