COVID-19 June Rent Payment Report: June Rent Payments Steady as Employment Rebounds

While the pandemic wears on, we continue to monitor the effects of COVID-19 on rent payments across the U.S. Nearly three months since we first began closely analyzing rent payment behavior trends, we report on rent payments during the June grace period to help apartment operators understand what to expect. Below is a summary of key insights.

June Rent Payments Hold Steady from May But Renters Still Seek Rent Relief

The total percent of rent collected during the June grace period held neck-and-neck with May, but it was still 6 percentage points down from the pre-COVID average grace period.

Overall, full rent payments made on June 1 showed a slight dip compared to April and May, but rebounded over the remainder of the grace period. The shaky first day could be a result of unemployment benefits nearing expiration and federal relief checks no longer being distributed.

Last month, evidence of struggle began to appear among Class C properties. In June, however, businesses opened back up and unemployment slowed, especially in service sectors such as retail and travel. As a result, Class C rent payments showed only a 1% dip month-over-month compared to a 4% drop in May.

Across the board, our data suggests that renters are struggling to make full rent payments. A look at the percent of total rent paid each month shows that the amount of rent that partial payers are able to pay has declined steadily since the onset of COVID-19. Partial rent payers paid only 48% of owed rent during the June grace period compared to 59% of rent pre-COVID.

Our full COVID-19 Rent Payment Report elaborates on:

• Comparisons to May rent payment data
• The stabilization of June rent payments
• Trends across major metros
• Behavior and impact by asset class
• Growing need for rent assistance