- People in Austin earning the minimum wage of $7.25 an hour would need to work 152 hours a week to live in a two-bedroom apartment according to a new study.
- The NLIHC’s annual Out of Reach study examines how much it would cost to meet the federal affordability guideline of spending no more than 30% of your income on housing.
- The analysis shows that 25% of Black families and 23% of Hispanic families pay over half of their monthly income on housing, compared to only 15% of White households.
Andrew Weber from KUT 90.5 writes:
“If you’re earning minimum wage in Austin, you’d need to work more than anywhere else in Texas to pay for a two-bedroom apartment, according to a new study.
The National Low Income Housing Center’s annual Out of Reach study examines the financial burden associated with housing costs, including how much it would cost to meet the federal affordability guideline of spending no more than 30% of your income on housing.
The study, which uses U.S. Housing and Urban Development data, says the Austin-Round Rock area’s housing costs are the highest in Texas.
The Austin-Round Rock area was followed by the Midland, Dallas, Kendall County and Fort Worth-Arlington areas as the least affordable, the report says.
In 2021, Austinites would need to earn $27.58 an hour to live in a fair-market, two-bedroom apartment without paying more than 30% of their income on housing. People earning minimum wage (or $7.25 an hour) would need to work 152 hours a week to live affordably in a two-bedroom apartment, the study says…”
See full story here.
Categories: Government, Labor
Economic Left 
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