Bradenton area renters spend more than they should, experts say

Spending a reasonable amount of money on housing is crucial to managing your finances, but the Bradenton area is one of the worst in the nation if you’re trying to achieve balanced budget nirvana.

Financial experts recommend spending about 30 percent of your income on rent, but according to a study by Apartment Lists, about 56 percent of residents in the Bradenton-Sarasota-North Port area are “cost-burdened” and spend more than that.

About 29 percent of area residents spend between 30 and 50 percent of their income on rent, but 27 percent spend more than that. The 56 percent is higher than the national average of 49.7 percent of renters who were cost-burdened, which is the lowest number since 2008.

A study last month found that buying a home is a smarter move than renting in the Bradenton-Sarasota-North Port area, taking only 2.3 years to break even with the cost of buying a home.

According to Zillow, the average rent cost in Bradenton was $1,658 per month in September.

The southern portion of the U.S. remains a great place to rent, but Florida is the exception and is one of the worst places to do so. Almost every metropolitan area in the state has more cost-burdened renters than the national average.

The study also found that, nationally, renters spend more per month than homeowners do. About 28 percent of homeowners spend more than the suggested 30 percent of their income on housing.

Apartment List used U.S. Census data for median rents and renter income to calculate its results.

This story was originally published November 9, 2017 at 12:11 PM with the headline "Bradenton area renters spend more than they should, experts say."