The Average Amount of Rent Owed in Every State

Last week, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention extended a pandemic-era protection policy for renters, making the new deadline for the eviction moratorium October 3. The eviction ban was scheduled to expire on July 31, but data showing millions of Americans are still struggling to pay their rent every month shows the government extension coming at a time where it is very much needed.

A recent report by the Center for Budget and Policy Priorities showed that one out of every seven renters still owes back rent. The new moratorium covers about 80 percent of counties throughout the country. Here is a compilation of how each state is faring in its rent struggles.

Last updated: August 12, 2021

In Alabama, where rent averages $914 a month, renters carry an average debt of $2,728, or about three months’ worth of rent.

In Alaska, the rent averages to be $1,288, with renters currently carrying an average debt of $4,112. This amounts to about three months of rent still owed.

In Arizona, the average rent is $1,208, and renters are in debt an average of $3,582. Therefore, they are behind on at least three months of rent.

Arkansas has an average rent of $778, but an average rental debt of $2,672 — that’s nearly three and a half months in back rent owed.

The sunshine state has an average rent of $1,777 — and one of the highest average rental debts in the nation with $5,281 still owed.

Colorado has an average rent of $1,404 and an average outstanding rental debt of $4,290, marking almost three months.

Connecticut has an average rent of $1,414 and an average rental debt outstanding of $3,963, which translates to just under three months of rent due.

Delaware residents typically rent for around $1,346 and currently, on average, owe $3,501 in back rent — or about two months’ worth.

Florida has an average rent of $1,329 and an average outstanding rent balance of $4,073 — roughly three months’ worth.

Georgia has an average rental rate of $1,083 and owes about $3,352 in outstanding household rental debt, bringing it to just over three months of rent due.

The islands are one of the most expensive areas to live in the country, with an average rent of $1,880. They also owe some of the highest amounts, with about $5,692 still owed in back rent.

Idaho has an average rent of $901 a month, and the state’s renters hold an average of $3,004 in renter’s debt. That’s just a little over three months due.

Containing one of the nation’s largest cities, Illinois’ average rent is $1,049. The average debt outstanding is $3,406, which is just shy of three months’ worth of back rent.

The state’s average rent is $889 per month, but the average debt outstanding is $2,842. This totals a little over three months’ worth of rent.

Iowa’s average rent is $831, and the average debt outstanding is about $2,749, just shy of a whopping four months of back rent due.

Average rent in Kansas comes in around $879, and the average back rent due is $3,081, meaning that almost four months of back rent is due.

Kentucky has an average rent of $859, and an outstanding average rent debt balance of $2,685 — about three months’ worth.

Louisiana has an average rent of $869 and an average outstanding debt balance of $2,793.

Maine has an average rent of $1,024, and an average outstanding rental debt balance of $2,810. The state is on the lower side of debt obligations, just shy of three months due.

The average rent in Maryland is $1,505 and owes $4,548 on average in back rent, just over three months’ worth.

Average rent in Massachusetts is $1,553 with average back rent outstanding $4,331.

Michigan has an average rent of $954. The average outstanding debt balance in the state is $2,905, almost three months’ worth.

The state’s average rent is $1,054, with an outstanding debt balance of $3,313.

Mississippi has an average rent of $868 in the state, but their outstanding rental debt on average is $2,502, over three months’ worth.

In Missouri, the average rent is $909, and the average outstanding debt for renters on average is $2,748.

The average rent in Montana is $919, with the average outstanding rental debt being $2,523.

Nebraska’s average rent is $899, and the outstanding rental debt balance is $2,880 per household.

The state average rent is $1,245, and the outstanding debt balance on rent per household is estimated at $3,960. This comes in at the national average of around three months, impressive considering Las Vegas, a large contributor to the state’s economy, was mostly shut down in the early days of the pandemic.

Average rent for the state is $1,213, with average outstanding rental debt around $3,843.

The average rent in New Jersey is $1,541 with an average household rental debt estimated to be around $4,391.

The state’s average rent is $901, and the estimated outstanding rent balance is $2,789.

Unsurprisingly, the average rent in the Empire State is on the higher end with $1,431. The average amount of rent outstanding is $4,408, around the national average of three months.

The average rent in the state is $1,008 and the average amount of outstanding rental debt is $2,971.

North Dakota has an average rent cost of $853, and an estimated outstanding rental balance of $2,798.

Ohio’s average rent comes in at $865, and the average amount of back rent still due is $2,713.

The state’s average rent is $847, and the estimated amount of back rent due is $2,615.

Oregon’s average rent is on the high side of the national average, coming in at $1,226. The amount of outstanding rental balance due is around $3,971.

The state’s average rent is $1,001, with an average outstanding debt balance of $3,128.

The state’s average rent is $1,178, with an average outstanding debt balance of $3,314.

South Carolina’s average rent is $1,004. The state has an outstanding average rent balance of $2,978.

South Dakota has a state average of $804 for rent, with an average back rent of $2,500 per household — over three months’ worth.

The average rent in Tennessee is $979, with an outstanding rent balance estimated at $2,977.

In Texas, the average rent is $1,090. The average back rent due in the state is $3,591 per household — over three months’ worth of rent.

Utah’s average rent is somewhat on the higher side, coming in at $1,171. The outstanding rental debt per household is $3,731.

Vermont carries an average renter debt of $3,547.

Note: Average rent data wasn’t available via Apartment List’s monthly rent estimates. See methodology on last slide.

Renters in Virginia pay, on average, $1,351. Their average renter debt, on the other hand, is $3,927.

Slightly more expensive than New York, rent in Washington will run you around $1,487. The average household back rent due is $4,502.

The average rent is $786, and the average household owes about $2,300 — just over three months’ worth.

The average rent in Wisconsin is $973, where the average household owes $2,857 in back rent.

The state average rent is $876, and the average outstanding rent balance is $2,740.

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Methodology: To find the average cost of rent in every state, GOBankingRates used Apartment List’s monthly rent estimate data, which extrapolates median rent data from the Census Bureau forward to the current month using a growth rate calculated from their listing data. Averaging the monthly rent estimates for all unit types overall, studios, one-bedroom, two-bedroom, three-bedroom, and four-bedroom units, GOBankingRates found the 2020 average typical rent for units of each type in every state. All data was collected on and up to date as of March 31, 2021. Renter debt was puled from Surgo Ventures data via CNBC.