The Gap 2026: What the National Shortage of Affordable Homes Means for Mecklenburg County

In March, the National Low Income Housing Coalition released The Gap: A Shortage of Affordable Homes, its annual report examining the availability of rental housing affordable to the lowest-income households in the United States.

This blog provides an overview of the report, key findings, and what they might mean for Charlotte-Mecklenburg.

REPORT OVERVIEW

The 2026 Gap Report examines the nationwide shortage of affordable and available rental housing for extremely low-income renters in the United States. Using data primarily from the U.S. Census Bureau’s American Community Survey (ACS) and housing income thresholds from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), the report estimates the supply of rental units affordable to households earning at or below 30% of area median income and compares that supply to the number of renters in need. The report focuses on extremely low-income renters, defined as households with incomes at or below the federal poverty guideline or 30% of area median income, whichever is higher. These are households most likely to be living on fixed incomes, working in low-wage jobs, caring for children or family members, experiencing disability, or facing other barriers to housing stability. The report provides national, state, and metropolitan-level analyses of housing affordability, cost burden, and rental housing availability, highlighting the significant gap between the number of extremely low-income renter households and the number of homes they can realistically afford.

KEY FINDINGS

The 2026 report reinforces several important points about the affordable housing crisis:

• The shortage is most severe for the lowest-income renters: Extremely low-income renters are the only income group facing an absolute shortage of affordable housing. Nationally, the report finds that there is a shortage of 2 million affordable and available rental homesfor 11 million extremely low-income renter households. Put another way, there are only 35 affordable and available homes for every 100 extremely low-income renter households across the country.

• Affordable does not always mean available: Some homes may be priced low enough for extremely low-income households, but they are occupied by higher-income renters. This means the lowest-income renters must compete with households who have more income and more housing choice.

• Severe cost burden is widespread: Nationally, 74% of extremely low-income rentersare severely cost-burdened, meaning they spend more than half of their income on rent and utilities. These renters make up nearly one-fourth of all renters, but account for 68% of all severely cost-burdened renters.

• The crisis is also an equity issue: The report finds that Black, Latino, and American Indian or Alaska Native households are disproportionately likely to be extremely low-income renters and are disproportionately impacted by the shortage. Nationally, Black households are three times as likely as white households to be extremely low-income renters, while Latino households are more than twice as likely.

WHAT THIS REPORT MEANS FOR CHARLOTTE-MECKLENBURG

The report’s findings have direct implications for Mecklenburg County and the broader Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia region.

For the Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia, NC-SC Metropolitan Statistical Area, the report estimates a shortage of 51,695 affordable and available rental homes for extremely low-income renter households. The region has only 31 affordable and available rental homes for every 100 extremely low-income renter households, which is below the national rate of 35 per 100. The shortage expands to 67,419 homes when looking at renter households at or below 50% of AMI.

The report also shows that 83% of extremely low-income renters in the Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia region are severely cost-burdened. This means the vast majority of the region’s lowest-income renters are spending more than half of their income on rent and utilities. Among renters with incomes between extremely low income and 50% of AMI, 44% are severely cost-burdened. Even among renters between 51% and 80% of AMI, 8% are severely cost-burdened.

For Mecklenburg County, this helps explain why housing instability remains persistent even as the community continues to invest in housing production, rental assistance, homelessness prevention, and permanent housing interventions. The issue is not only whether housing is being built. It is whether enough housing is affordable for households with the lowest incomes.