The Role of Social Support as a Moderator of Housing Instability in Single Mother and Two-Parent Households

With a dwindling supply of affordable housing and limited public dollars to help families afford rising rents, lower-income households and those headed by a single mother often pay rent late and face the threat of eviction. Social support systems have long been associated with helping families weather financial instability; yet, no research has explored whether different types and levels of social support are associated with housing stability for different family structures. The 2008 Survey of Income and Program Participation and both additive and multiplicative interactions were used to test for moderating effects of social support on a late rent payment for two-parent households (n = 1,106) and those headed by single mothers (n = 813). Compared with two-parent households, single mothers with little to no perceived social support from family experienced a 33% increase in the relative risk of a late rent payment. Those who indicated little to no social support from other community resources experienced a 68% greater risk of a late rent payment compared with two-parent families. Findings are discussed in the context of a potential economic climate that may exacerbate inequality and will require social workers to cultivate and maintain informal support networks that can buffer financial insecurity.