Rent-Burdened Households
in the Coachella Valley
Historically
high housing costs and low vacancy rates have pushed California’s rental rates
to some of the highest in the nation. These rising rental costs have
also led to a rise in the number of “rent-burdened” households, those that spend more than 30% of their incomes on rent and utilities (like
electricity, water, gas, and sewage). The implications of rent burden varies from household to household; however, it often disproportionately
affect low income households with more members who are frequently
forced to make trade-offs between rental costs and basic needs such as food,
clothing, transportation, education and routine medical services.
In
the Coachella Valley, a desert community in Riverside County southeast from the
San Bernardino Mountains, 56% of the population is rent burdened according to
2016 American Community Survey 5-year estimates. This is nearly the same percentage as the City of Los Angeles, which has higher rents than the
Coachella Valley. If rental costs are lower in the Coachella Valley than they are in Los Angeles, what is
driving similar rates of rent burden? This data story will explore how
factors including rent price, income, and family size contribute to rent burden for certain people in the Coachella Valley.
The
map below provides a stark visual of how rent burden affects all areas of the
Coachella Valley. Between 40% and 60% of the population are rent burdened in the bright orange areas making up
the majority of the map, while over 60% of the population are rent
burdened in the darkest shaded areas. Hover
over an area on the map to see median rent, median income and demographic
information about that area.
"It came down to either pay what I could on the electric bill and put food on the table or go without food"- Dale Brown, La Quinta Resident
Rental Costs and Income
Rents in the Coachella Valley
Median gross rent, which includes rent price plus the cost of utilities like electricity, water, gas
and sewage, is $1,080 in the Coachella Valley. In some of the centrally located resort cities, such as
Palm Springs, Rancho Mirage and Palm Desert, median gross rent prices are over
$2,000.
In contrast, median rents in some of the
unincorporated communities of the Coachella Valley are as low as $606. Despite
relatively low rents in these communities, roughly half of the renter population is still burdened. Low incomes can sometimes provide an explanation for why
large numbers of people are rent burdened even in areas with relatively lower
rents.
Income in the Coachella Valley
The median income for renters in the Coachella Valley is
just $40,453, much lower than the median of $60,510 per year for homeowners. Just
as there is a disparity between the incomes of renters and homeowners, there
are also large income disparities even within the renter population. These disparities can provide an explanation
for why some areas with relatively low rents have large rent-burdened
population compared to other areas with higher rents.
For example, in the Northern corner of the resort city
La Quinta (Census Tract 452.15), the median rent is $1,738 - significantly
higher than the Coachella Valley median rent. However, the median income for renters in
this part of La Quinta is $97,083 and less than a quarter of that area’s renters
are rent burdened. Just outside of La Quinta’s borders in a majority
unincorporated area to the Southeast (Census Tract 456.09), the median rent
price is significantly lower at $644 per month. Despite having lower rents,
half of renters in this area are rent burdened, likely because the renter
median income in the area is just $25,262.
The comparison of rent burden in these two areas demonstrates the
importance of income in determining rent burden in the Coachella Valley, regardless
of how high or low rent prices are.
Rent Burden and Race
The comparison between the Northern corner of La Quinta
and the unincorporated area to the City’s Southeast becomes even more stark
when one examines the racial composition of the two areas. In the Northern corner of the city, 58% of
the population is White and 35% is Latinx.
In the unincorporated area outside of the city, just 4% of the
population is White and 96% of the population is Latinx. While the American Community Survey doesn’t
provide data on how rent burden affects people of different races, an
examination of incomes and household characteristics between White and Latinx households can show why rent burden is likely affecting Latinx households at higher rates in the Coachella Valley.
Median household income for Latinx households in the
Coachella Valley is $43,012, while the median household income for White
households in the Coachella Valley is $57,905. This is a substantial difference
when considering that almost 79% of households earning less than $50,000
annually are rent burdened, while less than 18% of households who earn $50,000
or more a year are rent burdened. Explore how median household
income varies between different households in the Coachella Valley in the chart below.
Within the Coachella Valley, significant disparities exist across neighborhoods, and also across racial and ethnic groups, with the most marginalized families within the Coachella Valley experiencing the most extreme poverty and vulnerability.- Lift to Rise
Median household income is not the only notable
difference between Latinx and White households in the Coachella Valley. On
average, Latinx households have 3.5 members in their households with 1.4
children, compared to White households that are significantly older and have
fewer than 2 members and 0.3 children in their household.
The size and composition of a household can have
important implications on cost of living. In addition to having a significantly lower median income than White households, Latinx households also have more family members, including children,
to provide for. Further, the White population in the Coachella Valley tends to be older than the average population. Because the elderly are more likely to have higher
wealth regardless of their income, older White households are likely not as
vulnerable to rent burden as younger Latinx households in the Coachella Valley.
A People Centered & Data Driven Approach
Residents, policymakers, and practitioners are actively trying to combat the growing issue of rent burden in the Coachella Valley; yet they lack full information, limiting effective intervention. Lift to Rise is a community-based partnership in the
Coachella Valley with the primary goal of advancing a future where all
Coachella Valley families are healthy, stable, and thriving. Lift to Rise
uses a collective impact approach, combining data and the expertise of local organizations to identify gaps by race,
gender and other demographics that help address the underlying causes of
poverty and rent burden.
As a
research partner for Lift to Rise, the USC Sol Price Center for Social Innovation, is
conducting focus groups in English and Spanish to understand how residents
are coping with increasing rent burden across the region. The focus groups provide critical insight
into the vulnerabilities and challenges produced by rent burden, detailing the
coping strategies and trade-offs rent-burdened residents are forced to
make.
Additionally, the
Price Center is partnering with Lift To Rise in the development of the Neighborhood Data for Social Change (NDSC) platform for the Coachella
Valley. Scheduled to launch in November, the free, publicly available
platform will bring issues facing Coachella Valley residents to light through maps,
charts, data analysis, and storytelling. Understanding the forces
driving rent burden on both a community and regional level helps improve local
policies and programs that lead to a better quality of life for all Coachella Valley residents.
Sources
Cover Photo: Noe Montes
The PEW
Charitable Trusts. American Families Face
a Growing Rent Burden. Pew analysis of Panel Study of Income Dynamics data.
April, 2018.
Goulding,
Megan. Rising Rent Burden in Los Angeles.
USC Price Center for Social Innovation. October, 2017.
United States Census
Bureau. B03002: Hispanic or Latino Origin
by Race. American Community Survey, 2012-2016.
United States Census
Bureau. B09005: Household Type for
Children Under 18 Years in Households (Excluding Householders, Spouses, and
Unmarried Partners). American Community Survey, 2012-2016.
United States Census
Bureau. B19013: Median Household Income in
the Past 12 Months (In 2016 Inflation-Adjusted Dollars). American
Community Survey, 2012-2016.
United States Census
Bureau. B25064: Median Gross Rent
(Dollars). American Community Survey, 2012-2016.
United States Census
Bureau. B25070: Gross Rent as a Percentage
of Household Income in the Past 12 Months. American Community
Survey, 2012-2016.
United States Census
Bureau. S1101: Households and Families.
American Community Survey, 2012-2016.
USC Price
Center for Social Innovation. Lift to
Rise Summary Brief. Lift to Rise. 2017.
USC Price Center for Social Innovation. Coachella Valley Needs Assessment. USC Sol Price
School of Public Policy. 2017.
USC Price Center for Social Innovation. 2017-18 Annual Report. USC Sol Price
School of Public Policy. August, 2018.