Abstract:

While renters are about 36% of the U.S. population (DeSilver 2021), the literature on their experiences with different climate and weather hazards is underdeveloped. Furthermore, previous systematic reviews of housing tenure and hazards have included dated studies and have not had an exclusive focus on the U.S. (Lee and Van Zandt 2019; Gonzalez and Fisher2026); these have also had a single hazard focus (Gonzalez and Fisher 2026). Up to date insights on how renters are experiencing climate and weather hazards across U.S. communities are needed to enhance multi-scalar resilience efforts. This systematic review focused on U.S. studies (n=29) conducted after 2010 on renters and climate and weather hazards in the U.S.; these included multiple hazards, which aligned with the Science Priorities of the NOAA Office of Atmospheric Research. Additionally, Gemini.AI was used to develop database search strings.

A qualitative synthesis of qualitative and mixed-methods peer-reviewed studies and grey literature was conducted to assess renters’ direct experiences. Specifically, a targeted iterative review was employed to gain insights on the research question: what are the challenges for renters across U.S. regions when preparing, recovering from, and adapting to climate and weather-related hazards? Housing tenure was associated with differentiated preparedness, recovery, and adaptation outcomes. Renter housing quality and the association of renters with other social vulnerability dimensions exacerbated hazard risk. Policies and programs have yet to adequately integrate affordable housing access and housing stability with resiliency. Tenure differentiation within studies was underdeveloped; this underscored the need for methodological innovation to better include the diversity in renter types and hybrid tenure(e.g., renter-owner) like mobile and manufactured home residents. Hazards studies should further develop methodologies for the study of diverse tenure types in relation to climate and weather hazards. Finally, studies that move beyond the owner/renter binary as broad categories can better inform the contours of resilience interventions