National Low Income Housing Coalition Releases Out of Reach 2016 - May 25, 2016

PRESS RELEASE
CONTACTS: Renee Willis, National Low Income Housing Coalition, rwillis@nlihc.org, 202-662-1530 x247

Erin Roussinova, Citizens’ Housing and Planning Association, eroussinova@chapa.org, 617-742-0820 x119

Housing Costs Too High in Massachusetts for Low-Wage Workers

In order to afford a modest, two-bedroom apartment at Fair Market Rent in Massachusetts, renters need to earn $25.91 per hour. This is Massachusetts’ 2016 Housing Wage, revealed in a national report released today by the National Low Income Housing Coalition, Out of Reach 2016. In the Boston-Cambridge-Quincy area, the Housing Wage is even higher - $30.13 per hour.

Every year, Out of Reach reports on the Housing Wage for all states, counties, and metropolitan areas in the country. The report highlights the gap between what renters earn and what it costs to afford rent at fair market value.

“Housing costs are too high in Massachusetts,” said Brenda Clement, the Executive Director of Citizens’ Housing and Planning Association (CHAPA). “The shortage of housing affordable to low-wage workers is placing a significant burden on families. Solving this problem and helping families reach economic stability requires resources, a commitment to increasing housing production in every community across the state, and connecting people with critical services in those communities, such as childcare, healthcare, education, and employment services.”

The federal minimum wage has remained at $7.25 an hour without an increase since 2009, generating debate and calls to raise the wage both at the state and federal level. In no state, even those where the minimum wage has been set above the federal standard, can a minimum wage renter working a 40 hour work week afford a one-bedroom rental unit at the average Fair Market Rent. Working at the minimum wage of $10 per hour in Massachusetts a family must have 2.6 wage earners working full-time, or one full-time earner working 104 hours per week at minimum wage, to afford a modest two-bedroom apartment. The typical renter in Massachusetts earns $18.47 per hour, which is $7.44 less than the hourly wage needed to afford a modest unit.

"The Out of Reach data reflect a grim reality across the nation. There is no place in the United States where a minimum wage worker can afford a two-bedroom apartment,” said Diane Yentel, President and CEO of the National Low Income Housing Coalition. "We as a nation must respond by investing in affordable housing for the lowest income households in America. The new national Housing Trust Fund is a critical solution, but it must be significantly expanded to address the need."

For additional information, visit: http://www.nlihc.org/oor