• Reports

Rental Housing Needs Assessment

May 2023

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A city’s housing market is a result of a confluence of factors: regional economic opportunity, existing housing supply, migration patterns, historic inequities, macroeconomic trends, and household preferences, among others. Addressing housing goals can mean different things for different residents: building affordable housing, preventing displacement, creating homeownership opportunities, or repairing dilapidated housing stock.

In Dallas, addressing the needs of renters, who often face higher poverty rates and cost burdens, is crucial to foster a more equitable and inclusive community. Prioritizing affordable rental options can support lower-income households, essential workers, and homelessness prevention. This report focuses on the rental housing needs for the City of Dallas’ residents, with an emphasis on low-income households.

Homeownership opportunities and rental affordability are often linked—in Dallas, trends suggest that moderate and high-income renters who are unable to afford homes are bidding up rents for lower-income residents. Homeownership can be an important wealth-building tool and long-term stabilizer for families. Subsequent CPAL projects will significantly focus on homeownership opportunities.

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  • 2025 Rental Housing Needs Assessment

    The 2025 Rental Housing Needs Assessment establishes a shared fact base on rental affordability, supply, and opportunity in the City of Dallas.

    • Dallas faces a 46,000-unit shortage of rental homes affordable to very low-income households earning ≤50% of Area Median Income (AMI). Since CPAL first published this report in 2023, the gap has grown by more than 12,000 units.
    • Between 2021 and 2023, the number of rental units priced below $1,000 per month was cut in half — a loss of over 50,000 units. Today, 90% of affordable units for low-income renters are unsubsidized and vulnerable to market pressures.
    • Half of all renters spend more than 30% of their income on housing, including 75% of single parents with children and 65% of senior renters. Extremely low-income renters spend, on average, 78% of their income on housing, leaving little room for other necessities.
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  • 2024 Rental Housing Needs Assessment

    2024 Update of CPAL’s Rental Housing Needs Assessment analyzes the growing gap of rental housing supply and demand for low-income families.

    • As of 2022, Dallas had a 39,900 unit gap in affordable rental housing. The shortage of affordable housing units is projected to grow to 76,100 units by 2035, driven by an anticipated loss of 54,000 unrestricted affordable housing units.
    • Despite improvement over time in educational attainment and wages, 49% of all renters in the City of Dallas are housing cost burdened, and some renters are disproportionately affected, including Black renters, senior renters, and single parents with children.
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  • Housing Remediation as an Effective Intervention for Pediatric Asthma

    This issue-brief describes the impacts of asthma in Dallas and how home repair can better asthma outcomes, increase economic mobility, and improve the quality of life for children across Dallas.

    • Asthma is a leading cause of school absenteeism and is costly. In 2023, Dallas County children experienced 1,036 asthma inpatient hospital visits. The combined costs of these visits were ~$10.3M, for an average cost of $9,966 per visit. 
    • The Green and Healthy Homes Initiative estimates that 40% of all asthma episodes are caused by preventable home-based asthma allergens, like dust, pests, and mold.
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