Key Findings
- Of the five retail-season jobs highlighted in the report --delivery truck drivers, mail carriers, retail salespeople, retail assistant managers and stock clerks -- only mail carriers earn enough on average to afford mortgage payments at typical prices nationwide, and only mail carriers and retail assistant managers can afford typical rents on a two-bedroom apartment. However, even a mail carrier's salary will not cover rent on a typical two-bedroom apartment or the mortgage payment on a median home in the most expensive housing markets.
- For nearly half of the metro areas studied, the income needed to buy a median-priced home dropped by at least three percent, due to a combination of lower home prices and falling mortgage interest rates. However, many workers face additional obstacles to ownership, including access to credit and saving for a down payment. Other workers might prefer renting for reasons as varied as concerns about home price volatility, uncertainty about affording the costs of major repairs, or a desire for mobility to access job opportunities elsewhere.
- Many markets run counter to the trend of homeownership becoming less expensive. In 24 percent of the metro areas studied, a median-priced home became more expensive for buyers between the 3rd quarter of 2011 and the 4th quarter of 2009. In seven of those, the income needed to afford a median-priced home rose by more than ten percent over that period: increases in qualifying incomes in Atlantic City, NJ; Ann Arbor, MI; Syracuse, NY; Beaumont, TX; Wheeling, WV; Monroe, MI; and Ithaca, NY, far outpaced typical wage growth.
- Over the past year, fair market rents rose just slightly, on average. Among the markets studied, the fair market rent for a two-bedroom apartment rose by a median of 1.1 percent, and very few areas had rents either increase or decrease by more than 5 percent. With rent increases generally being moderate, housing affordability changes for renters tend to reflect changes in income rather than in housing costs.
Sampling of Coverage for Summer 2011 Paycheck to Paycheck
- Baltimore Sun, July 21, 2011 -- "Report: Housing costs out of reach for many workers"
- Chicago Tribune, July 29, 2011 -- "Many workers still priced out of housing market"
- Forbes Blog, July 18, 2011 -- Renting in the most expensive cities: what you get
- TIME Curious Capitalist Blog, July 26, 2011 -- "Housing double dip: Is it over?"
- WYPR Baltimore's Midday with Dan Rodricks, July 22, 2011 -- The Midday News Review
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