Too Damn High

How much do Dallasites spend on rent? New study reveals staggering numbers.

Almost half of Dallas renters spend too much of their income on rent.

Photo courtesy of TexasApartmentRentals.com

Is Dallas rent too damn high? A new report from Apartment List reveals that almost half of Dallas renters are "cost-burdened," meaning they spend more than 30 percent of their income on rent.

Apartment List analyzed U.S. Census data from 2007-2014 and found that 48.5 percent of Dallas renters were cost-burdened in 2014. The median monthly rent was $861, while median monthly renter income was $2,820.That burden increased from 45.7 percent in 2007.

In other grim news, the report shows that half of Dallas' cost-burdened renters are severely burdened, meaning they spend more than 50 percent of their income on rent. While the local burden has increased, Apartment List notes that Dallas fares better than the national average of cost-burdened renters, which was 51.8 percent in 2014.

The report warns that any cost burden — especially a severe one — can hinder renters from transitioning to homeownership and preparing for the future. "Most personal finance experts recommend allocating 20-30 percent of income for rent, around 5 percent on healthcare, and around 10 percent for savings; high rents are likely eating into funds that should be set aside for health emergencies, the down payment on a home, or a retirement fund."

A recent study from Zillow echoes Apartment List's warning. The listing website says that renters who spend more than 30 percent of their income on rent make major cuts in other important areas like savings, healthcare, and retirement plans.

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safe suburbs

Dallas neighbor is proclaimed the second safest city in the U.S.

City of Frisco TX - City Hall/Facebook

Frisco residents feel right at home in the second-safest city in America.

One of Dallas' buzziest suburbs is also one of the safest in the U.S.: It's none other than Frisco, which was declared the No. 2 safest city in America for 2025 in a new study by personal finance advisors MoneyGeek.

The website's experts used an unusual metric: They looked at FBI crime statistics from 2023 to determine the cost of crime in 292 U.S. cities with populations over 100,000 residents.

The estimated cost of crime — otherwise known as the "societal cost of crime per resident" – was a mere $287 in 2023 in Frisco. That cost per capita is far lower than the national crime cost, which was $2,178 per resident.

The report also analyzed the city's violent crime and property crime rates per 100,000 residents, and Frisco again came through with flying colors, logging the third-lowest rate of violent crime in 2023, or only 86 crimes committed for every 100,000 residents.

The city didn't fare as well on property crime rate: There were 1,357 property crimes committed in 2023, the 40th lowest rate out of all 292 U.S. cities. It's still better than most places in the country, and way better than Oakland, California, which had the highest property crime rate in the nation with 10,117 crimes committed per 100,000 residents.

Finally, MoneyGeek determined each city's total cost of crime, which the study defines as the "economic losses attributed to crime and its cost to society (individuals, community and nationally) in millions."

In this metric, Frisco had the 11th lowest total crime cost, which came out to more than $65.5 million in 2023.

While some of these statistics may seem damning, Tulane University associate professor of political science Geoffrey T. Dancy warns it is unwise to make assumptions about a city based solely on its crime rates.

"We live in an unequal society," said Dancy in the report. "One often overlooked indicator of that inequality is who gets to engage in the politics of safety. Those who are objectively safe often fear crime and act on it in the counterproductive policies they support. Those who are actually victimized by crime and terrorized by gun violence pay the price and are rarely heard."

Other safe Texas cities in the report include Houston (No. 13), Plano (No. 18), Sugar Land (No. 20), McKinney (No. 22), Round Rock (No. 26), Grand Prairie (No. 42), and League City (No. 48).

In a comparison of just large U.S. cities, Arlington ranked as the No. 12 safest nationally with crime costs amounting to $1,515 per capita.

The top 10 safest American cities for 2025 are:

No. 1 – Ramapo Town, New York
No. 2 – Frisco, Texas
No. 3 – Irvine, California
No. 4 – Fishers, Indiana
No. 5 – Lakewood Township, New Jersey
No. 6 – Cary, North Carolina
No. 7 – Pembroke Pines, Florida
No. 8 – Elk Grove, California
No. 9 – Surprise, Arizona
No. 10 – Sterling Heights, Michigan

In a separate MoneyGeek analysis of the safest small cities in each state, Sachse (located 26 miles northeast of downtown Dallas) came out on top over all other tiny Texas towns with populations between 30,000 and 100,000 residents. In the national comparison, Sachse is the 40th safest small city in America.

For the purpose of the study, violent crime rates were determined based on the number of murders and non-negligent manslaughters, rapes, robberies and aggravated assaults per 100,000 residents; and property crimes were defined as the rates of burglary, larceny-theft and motor vehicle theft offenses per 100,000 residents.

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