A systematic review found consistent associations between housing insecurity and worse mental health among renters, especially around affordability stress and forced moves.

Renters facing unaffordable or unstable housing tend to report worse mental health and more depressive symptoms. In a systematic review, most included studies linked housing instability to mental health problems, and several linked unaffordable rent to poorer mental health in low-income renters. Evidence certainty was rated low to very low, largely because many studies were non-controlled.

Quick summary

• What the study found: Across 22 studies, unaffordable rent and housing instability were often associated with poorer mental health outcomes among adult renters.
• Why it matters: Housing insecurity is not just a financial strain; it appears tied to population mental health and depressive symptoms in renters across multiple OECD countries.
• What to be careful about: Because many included studies were not controlled designs and measures varied, causality and size of effects remain uncertain.

What was found

The journal article Exploring the association between housing insecurity and mental health among renters: A systematic review of quantitative primary and secondary studies synthesized quantitative research on adult renters in Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development member countries.

Twenty-two studies met criteria, with sample sizes from 89 to 179,037 and a total sample of at least 336,775. Most were longitudinal, with additional cross-sectional and quasi-experimental designs, and the authors conducted a narrative synthesis due to heterogeneity.

For housing affordability, six of nine studies reported significant associations between unaffordable rent and poor mental health in low-income renters. For housing instability, 12 of 14 studies reported significant associations with renters’ mental health issues.

What it means

Housing insecurity in this review centered on affordability and instability. Affordability was often operationalized with rent-to-income ratios or related “housing affordability stress,” while instability commonly included forced moves, eviction, or risk markers like being behind on rent.

Mental health outcomes were most often broad measures of overall mental health, well-being, and psychological distress, plus depressive symptoms. Few studies examined outcomes like anxiety, post-traumatic stress disorder, problematic alcohol use, or suicidal ideation and behavior.

Where it fits

Well-established stress frameworks help explain why housing insecurity could track with mental health. When rent consumes too much income or housing is precarious, people face chronic uncertainty, disrupted routines, and reduced control—risk factors for depressive symptoms.

Instability can also break social support and access to services. Even without clinical diagnoses, recurring strain can show up as psychological distress or lower well-being scores.

How to use it

If you work in mental health, screen for housing affordability stress and instability alongside symptoms. Concrete prompts include forced moves, eviction risk, and difficulty paying rent, because these were common operationalizations across studies.

At a systems level, the review argues for supportive housing policies and tenure protection measures to improve housing security and public health. That implication is consistent with the pattern of associations reported across countries.

Limits & what we still don’t know

Overall methodological quality was rated good using JBI Critical Appraisal Tools, but certainty of evidence was low to very low via Grading of Recommendations Assessment, Development, and Evaluation. The main reason was reliance on non-controlled study designs.

Measures of both housing insecurity and mental health varied, making direct comparisons difficult. The review was not preregistered and no protocol was published, which can increase risk of bias in review decisions.

Closing takeaway

Across the included studies, renters experiencing unaffordable or unstable housing generally showed worse mental health, especially poorer overall mental health and more depressive symptoms. The association is consistent enough to treat housing security as a mental health concern, even while causal claims remain limited.

Data in this article is provided by PLOS.

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