The National Low-Income Housing Coalition has released a new report with a startling fact: According to Vox, “There is no state in the union where a full-time, minimum-wage worker can afford to rent a one-bedroom apartment for less than 30 percent of his paycheck (which is a standard measure of housing affordability).”
Vox has a full break down of the report, which tallies the number of hours minimum wage employees need to work in order to rent a one-bedroom place with 30 percent of their income. While some state averages come close to a 40-hour work week, the number is astronomical in others. Minimum wage employees in California need to work 92 hours a week to comfortably afford housing, New Yorkers need to average 98 hours, and New Jerseyans must complete a whopping 100 hours a week.
Of course these are all state averages and the reality of rental costs and city minimum wages may differ in specific areas. But across the board, increases in rental prices tend to be higher than increases in the minimum wage.
Vox has more details and the full National Low-Income Housing Coalition report is available here.