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Burgess COMMENTARY Peter Burgess | ||
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Original article:
https://www.cnn.com/2021/07/15/homes/rent-affordability-minimum-wage/index.html
Minimum wage workers can't afford rent anywhere in America 'I need help': Unemployed man facing eviction U.S. President Joe Biden speaks during an event with governors of western states and members of his cabinet June 30, 2021 in Washington, DC. Biden addressed the combination of drought, heat and wildfires currently impacting the western portion of the U.S. during his remarks. (Photo by Win McNamee/Getty Images) Global tax plan wins support from 130 countries Childcare worker shortages, waitlists - parents face hurdles returning to work US trucker shortage means everything is more expensive A staff member cleans a room in the hotel at Chessington World of Adventures Resort in chessington, Greater London on July 4, 2020, on the first day of a major relaxation of lockdown restrictions during the novel coronavirus COVID-19 pandemic. - Fun resorts and hotels reopen as part of a wider government plan to relaunch the hospitality, tourism and culture sectors and help the UK economy recover from more than three tough months of lockdown. (Photo by Ben STANSALL / AFP) (Photo by BEN STANSALL/AFP via Getty Images) Hotels face labor shortages as travel demand surges Restaurants, once laying off workers, now can't find enough to hire This July 4th staple will be pricier this year Watch Yellen warn Congress: This could have 'catastrophic economic consequences' OAKLAND, CALIFORNIA - MAY 07: In an aerial view, an container ship is unloaded at the Port of Oakland on May 07, 2021 in Oakland, California. The Port of Oakland reported a record high in cargo traffic volume between January and March of this year with 631,119 20-foot shipping containers compared to 612,151 set in the first quarter of 2019. (Photo by Justin Sullivan/Getty Images) This is why your next car, cheese party or refrigerator could be in peril John Ayers looks through eviction documents as his eviction date looms. 'I need help': Unemployed man facing eviction \Federal Reserve Board Chairman Jerome Powell testifies at a House Coronavirus Subcommittee hearing on the Federal Reserves response to the Coronavirus Pandemic on Capitol Hill June 22, 2021 in Washington, DC. Powell spoke about the nation's recovery from the pandemic and that inflation has risen because of it. (Photo by Graeme Jennings-Pool/Getty Images) Fed Chair: Inflation likely to remain elevated in coming months rising wages job openings nela richardson jg orig_00013402.png Economist explains why there are so many job openings Pro-Trump supporters storm the U.S. Capitol following a rally with President Donald Trump on January 6, 2021 in Washington, DC. Trump supporters gathered in the nation's capital today to protest the ratification of President-elect Joe Biden's Electoral College victory over President Trump in the 2020 election. Fitch warns US politics could hurt credit rating Prices are going up on almost everything. Here's why 'More than my rent': Childcare costs have spiked The US needs construction workers In this photo taken on June 15, 2021 kitchen staff continue wearing facemasks while preparing breakfast at Langer's Delicatessen-Restaurant in Los Angeles, California, on California's first day of fully reopening its economy after some fifteen months of Coronavirus pandemic restrictions. The US economy added 850,000 jobs in June U.S. President Joe Biden speaks during an event with governors of western states and members of his cabinet June 30, 2021 in Washington, DC. Biden addressed the combination of drought, heat and wildfires currently impacting the western portion of the U.S. during his remarks. (Photo by Win McNamee/Getty Images) Global tax plan wins support from 130 countries Childcare worker shortages, waitlists - parents face hurdles returning to work US trucker shortage means everything is more expensive A staff member cleans a room in the hotel at Chessington World of Adventures Resort in chessington, Greater London on July 4, 2020, on the first day of a major relaxation of lockdown restrictions during the novel coronavirus COVID-19 pandemic. - Fun resorts and hotels reopen as part of a wider government plan to relaunch the hospitality, tourism and culture sectors and help the UK economy recover from more than three tough months of lockdown. (Photo by Ben STANSALL / AFP) (Photo by BEN STANSALL/AFP via Getty Images) Hotels face labor shortages as travel demand surges Restaurants, once laying off workers, now can't find enough to hire This July 4th staple will be pricier this year Watch Yellen warn Congress: This could have 'catastrophic economic consequences' OAKLAND, CALIFORNIA - MAY 07: In an aerial view, an container ship is unloaded at the Port of Oakland on May 07, 2021 in Oakland, California. The Port of Oakland reported a record high in cargo traffic volume between January and March of this year with 631,119 20-foot shipping containers compared to 612,151 set in the first quarter of 2019. (Photo by Justin Sullivan/Getty Images) This is why your next car, cheese party or refrigerator could be in peril John Ayers looks through eviction documents as his eviction date looms. 'I need help': Unemployed man facing eviction \Federal Reserve Board Chairman Jerome Powell testifies at a House Coronavirus Subcommittee hearing on the Federal Reserves response to the Coronavirus Pandemic on Capitol Hill June 22, 2021 in Washington, DC. Powell spoke about the nation's recovery from the pandemic and that inflation has risen because of it. (Photo by Graeme Jennings-Pool/Getty Images) Fed Chair: Inflation likely to remain elevated in coming months rising wages job openings nela richardson jg orig_00013402.png Economist explains why there are so many job openings Pro-Trump supporters storm the U.S. Capitol following a rally with President Donald Trump on January 6, 2021 in Washington, DC. Trump supporters gathered in the nation's capital today to protest the ratification of President-elect Joe Biden's Electoral College victory over President Trump in the 2020 election. Fitch warns US politics could hurt credit rating Prices are going up on almost everything. Here's why 'More than my rent': Childcare costs have spiked The US needs construction workers In this photo taken on June 15, 2021 kitchen staff continue wearing facemasks while preparing breakfast at Langer's Delicatessen-Restaurant in Los Angeles, California, on California's first day of fully reopening its economy after some fifteen months of Coronavirus pandemic restrictions. The US economy added 850,000 jobs in June Housing has become so expensive in the United States that the typical minimum wage worker cannot afford rent, according to a new report. There is no state, county or city in the country where a full-time, minimum-wage worker working 40 hours a week can afford a two-bedroom rental, a report from the National Low Income Housing Coalition showed. A full-time minimum-wage worker can afford a one-bedroom rental in only 7% of all US counties — 218 counties out of more than 3,000 nationwide. The federal minimum wage is $7.25. But the report showed that a worker would need to earn $24.90 per hour in order to afford a two-bedroom home at Fair Market Rent. And a $20.40 'housing wage' would be needed for a one-bedroom. Fair Market Rents are government estimates of what a person should expect to pay for a modest home in their area. A housing wage is the amount a worker would need to earn to afford a home without spending more than 30% of their income on rent and utilities. 'These amounts are far higher than many Americans -- including seniors, people with disabilities, and working families -- can spend on housing,' wrote Marcia L. Fudge, secretary of the US Department of Housing and Urban Development, in the preface to the report. Rents are out of reach Nationally, the average fair market rent is $1,061 a month for a one-bedroom and $1,295 a month for a two-bedroom, according to the report. Meanwhile, the average renter's hourly wage is $18.78, an income that can absorb only $977 a month in rent without being housing cost burdened. A household living on one minimum wage income can afford even less, $377 a month, the report showed. The average renter In 17 states -- including California, Florida, and New York -- earns at least $5.00 below the state's average two-bedroom housing wage. The biggest gap is in Hawaii, where the difference between what an average renter earns, and the state's two-bedroom housing wage is $20.13. And even the states, the District of Columbia, and several dozen counties and municipalities that have minimum wages higher than the federal minimum wage don't clear the bar. Many homebuyers are dropping out of the market Many homebuyers are dropping out of the market In California, where the minimum wage is $14 an hour, the cost of housing is so high that it still has the highest housing wage: A person in California needs to earn $39.03 an hour to afford a two-bedroom apartment and $31.06 for a one-bedroom. A minimum-wage worker would have to put in 89 hours every week just to afford the one-bedroom and 112 hours to afford the two-bedroom. West Virginia has among the lowest housing wages. But with a minimum wage of $8.75 an hour, workers would still need to earn $14.83 an hour to afford a two-bedroom apartment, and $12.12 for a one-bedroom. The report includes an interactive map that shows how much you need to earn in your area to afford rent. The pandemic's impact The pandemic exacerbated the unstable housing situation for many people, and local, state and federal governments put protections in place to prevent a tidal wave of evictions. An unprecedented amount of federal emergency rent relief -- $46 billion -- was set aside to provide relief for struggling renters and their frustrated landlords. But many will still struggle to pay rent in the future without addressing longer-term housing affordability, according to the report. There are 7.5 million low-income renters who are 'extremely' cost burdened — meaning they spend more than half of their income on housing, according to the report. This can put renters at risk of homelessness. More than 580,000 people were homeless during the peak of the coronavirus crisis last year, according to HUD. Housing affordability is a greater challenge for Black and Latino households, the report found, with those groups more likely to be housing cost burdened. During the pandemic, Black and Latino workers saw higher unemployment rates, leading to these groups being more likely to have fallen behind on rent, according to analysis of data from the Census Bureau by the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities The NLIHC a non-profit policy advocate for growing and improving affordable housing, recommends expanding rental assistance to all eligible struggling renters and making investments in the national Housing Trust Fund and public housing to create, preserve, and rehabilitate affordable homes. It also asks Congress to create a permanent National Housing Stabilization Fund to provide temporary assistance for households at risk of eviction and to strengthen and enforce renters' protections, in order to keep renters stably housed.
By Anna Bahney, CNN Business
| Thu July 15, 2021 ... Updated 5:20 PM ET, The text being discussed is available at | https://www.cnn.com/2021/07/15/homes/rent-affordability-minimum-wage/index.html and |