On Friday, July 10, the Housing and Land Use Policy Program at University of Iowa Public Policy Center released an interactive map giving an overview of affordable housing across the United States using data from the 1990 – 2010 censuses. The map indicates areas where renters and homeowners are “cost-burdened,” meaning they are spending more than 30 percent of their monthly income on housing costs, breaking down the information by county.
The map indicates that Johnson County has the highest percentage of cost-burdened renters in Iowa, with between 53 and 67 percent spending much of their income on housing. However, the total average of burdened residents, including homeowners, for Johnson County was lower: 37.7 percent.
Users are able to select from 1990, 2000 and 2010 data to see changes in affordable housing availability over time, as well as toggle between renter and homeowner data.
