How Many Homeowners Became Renters During the Great Recession?

Trulia has undertaken an in-depth analysis of American Community Survey data to reveal some of the impacts of the recession on the housing market.

1 minute read

February 13, 2016, 9:00 AM PST

By James Brasuell @CasualBrasuell


Stockton Foreclosure

Inman News / Flickr

"To get a clearer picture of who lost out on the American Dream of homeownership, we used the American Community Survey data from 2006 to 2014 to uncover who saw the biggest shift from being a homeowner to a renter by age, gender, race, and income in the 50 largest U.S. metros," according to a post by Mark Uh for Trulia.

In total, the number of homeowners that became renters might seem surprisingly low. "From the top of the housing bubble roughly a decade ago until just recently, there’s been a five percentage-point increase in the number of renters to owners to 43.3% from 38.5%," writes Uh.

But taking a closer look at demographic groups and around the country, a more nuanced portrait of the impacts of the Great Recession on homeowners emerges. The article includes a lot more data and insight into each of the trends described by the data.

Thursday, February 11, 2016 in Trulia

Young Professional

I love the variety of courses, many practical, and all richly illustrated. They have inspired many ideas that I've applied in practice, and in my own teaching. Mary G., Urban and Environmental Planner

I love the variety of courses, many practical, and all richly illustrated. They have inspired many ideas that I've applied in practice, and in my own teaching.

Mary G., Urban and Environmental Planner

Get top-rated, practical training for planners

Overlapping highways

The state-sanctioned urbicide of Austin

People don’t kill cities. Freeways do.

September 8, 2026 - Benjamin Schneider

The Hoover Dam blocking the Colorado River. The river's water level is noticeably low. The cliffs surrounding the blue water are brown and jagged.

US to reduce Colorado River water deliveries to Mexico

A new Colorado Treaty amendment reduces Mexico’s Colorado River water allocation by 250,000 acre feet.

September 11, 2026 - The Arizona Republic

Skyscrapers in Jersey City.

New Jersey’s second-largest city bans standalone data centers

Jersey City will continue to allow co-location facilities, such as those meant for research institutions that store their own data.

September 4, 2026 - The Cool Down

A New Jersey train approaches people waiting at the station.

Amtrak not solely to blame for New Jersey commuter rail's unreliability, report finds

A new study from the Garden State Initiative found that NJ Transit’s budget grew 20% across a 4 year period, but reliability declined significantly over the same period.

September 15 - Mass Transit

A tall, gray power plant billows smoke into a blue sky.

EPA erases limits on planet-warming pollution from power plants

Under Monday’s plan, power plants would still have some limits on how much mercury, arsenic and other contaminants they can emit.

September 15 - New York Times

A white RAPID bus. The lower half is light blue, and says RAPID in purple text. The bus is half visible, appearing from the left side of the image.

Phoenix announces new on-demand transit service, more frequent RAPID buses

Both new services will launch in October, and are part of Phoenix's Project Effective Access Solutions for Easing Congestion.

September 15 - KJZZ

FREE Course: Walkable City 1: Why Walkability?

After describing his path towards focusing on walkability as the essence of good planning, Jeff Speck marches through his five principal reasons for making more walkable places.

Reinventing Malls: Planning Alchemy—Turning Gray Fields Into Gold

The course focuses on the opportunities and imperatives that shape reinvention of mall sites.