2017 Out of Reach Report Sums Up Housing Crisis

The 2017 Out of Reach Report shows that there is a large discrepancy between the average renter wage and the average cost of rental housing nationwide. The report's statistics reveal that someone earning the federal minimum wage would need to work 117 hours a week for 52 weeks in order to afford a two bedroom apartment. In Los Angeles, the current minimum wage is $10.50 an hour, but people would need to earn approximately $30 an hour to rent a two bedroom home. Another way to look at this is that Los Angeles residents would need to have 3 full-time jobs in order to afford this rent. 
 
The 2017 Out of Reach Report focuses on the incompatibility of the renter’s average wage and the cost of rental housing across the U.S. This report shows that the whole nation is struggling from the housing crisis, but Los Angeles continues to be at the top of the charts as one of the most expensive places to live. This report puts forth a plan by Congressman Keith Ellison that looks to reform the mortgage interest deduction nationwide to better serve low-income homeowners, but local solutions - such as the Linkage Fee - are important as well for generating revenue for the construction of affordable units.

Key Facts:

• “The 2017 national Housing Wage is $21.21 per hour for a two-bedroom rental home”
• “In only 12 counties can a full-time minimum wage worker afford a modest one-bedroom rental home”
• “The mortgage interest deduction alone costs $65 billion to assist higher income homeowners, most of whom would be stably housed without government help”
• “2007-2015 the median gross rent for rental homes in the U.S. increased by 6%, after adjusting for overall inflation, while the median income for renter households rose by just 1% and median income for all households declined by 4%”
• Six out of seven jobs that are predicted to add the largest number of jobs by 2024 make wages that are below a modest rental housing wage.
• “In no state could a Social Security Income (SSI) recipient afford the average rent for a modest efficiency or one bed-room apartment in the private market.”