The problem
There’s a housing crisis and an overwhelming need for affordable housing and it’s critical that people are able to live in a home that they can afford.
Ten years after the Great Recession roiled the global financial system and sent the American economy into a tailspin, the U.S. has roared back to boast an unemployment rate below 4% — a figure not seen since the 1960s. Yet, despite the influx of jobs, wage growth has remained stagnant, leaving millions of middle-class Americans without savings, living paycheck to paycheck as they continue to fight for what generations before have taken for granted: decent, affordable housing.
From coast to coast, cities have experienced rising rents that have not been matched by wage increases. For middle-class renters who cannot qualify for subsidized housing, finding affordable apartments on the market has become more challenging by the year. Renters need to earn $21.21 an hour to afford a modest, two-bedroom apartment in the U.S., according to the National Low Income Housing Council, significantly more than the average national hourly wage of $16.38. This leaves renters at the lowest income levels and in the middle class unable to afford a place to live in most U.S. cities. Housing costs have been a growing strain on workforce renters, which affordable housing development nonprofit Enterprise Community Partners defines as between 60% and 120% of an area’s median income. More than a quarter of renters nationwide in this segment — out of 13 million total — are moderately cost-burdened, meaning they spend over 30% of their income on rent. And 3.5% are severely cost-burdened, spending over half their income on rent, an Enterprise Community study found. “Wages have lagged rental inflation consistently for the past decade or more, even before the recession,” Enterprise Community Vice President of Policy Development Andrew Jakabovics said. “What you’re seeing is a rise in the number of moderately burdened households. That has gone up pretty dramatically over the course of the last two decades.”
Properties available for sale
Next Steps...
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