Over 1 million New England households at risk of missing rent, mortgage payment

The Federal Reserve Bank of Boston published a new regional brief covering the risks New England homeowners and renters could face in the next several months due to the pandemic and related economic impacts. The brief considers potential job losses among workers in high-risk occupations and estimates income from stimulus and unemployment benefits to identify households for whom housing costs exceed available income. Assuming a specific share of unemployed people claim benefits, the authors find that in New England, 3 percent of homeowners and 13 percent of renters are at risk of missing a payment. These shares are about one-third as high as if expanded unemployment benefits and stimulus checks had not been implemented. #covid-19