How Much Maricopa County Renters Must Earn For Modest Apartment

PHOENIX, AZ — The typical household in Maricopa County must earn $19.48 an hour to be able to afford a modest, two-bedroom apartment at fair market rate, according to a new report by affordable housing advocates. In the report, “Out of Reach,” released Wednesday by the National Low Income Housing Coalition, Arizona is said to have the 25th highest “housing wage” in the country.

According to the study, fair market rent for a two-bedroom apartment in the state is $960. That means a typical household would have to earn $18.46 per hour in order to pay rent and not spend more than 30 percent of their income on housing.

Compared to Maricopa County, that might seem like a bargain. Here’s a breakdown for the county:

• Studio
  • Fair market rent: $684
  • Housing wage needed: $13.15 per hour
• One-bedroom
  • Fair market rent: $815
  • Housing wage needed: $15.67 per hour
• Two-bedroom
  • Fair market rent: $1,013
  • Housing wage needed: $19.48 per hour
• Three-bedroom
  • Fair market rent: $1,474
  • Housing wage needed: $28.35 per hour
• Four-bedroom
  • Fair market rent: $1,697
  • Housing wage needed: $32.63 per hour

The average minimum wage worker in Arizona — earning $10.50 an hour — would have to work 70 hours a week to afford a modest two-bedroom pad, the study found. The findings illustrate just how "far out of reach" even modestly priced housing is for the country's low-wage workers and most vulnerable populations.

The national housing wage is $22.10 for a modest two-bedroom apartment and $17.90 for a one-bedroom. That number ranges from as low as $13.84 in Arkansas all the way up to a whopping $36.13 in Hawaii.

The five metro areas with the highest two-bedroom housing wages are Stamford-Norwalk, Connecticut ($38.19); Honolulu, Hawaii ($39.06); Oakland-Fremont, California ($44.79); San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, California ($48.50); and San Francisco, California ($60.02).

A full-time worker making the federal minimum wage of $7.25 an hour would need to work about 122 hours a week — 52 weeks out of the year — to afford a typical two-bedroom apartment at fair market rent in the U.S., the study found. That same worker would need to work 99 hours a week to afford a one-bedroom home.

“In no state, metropolitan area, or county can a worker earning the federal minimum wage or prevailing state minimum wage afford a two-bedroom rental home at fair market rent by working a standard 40-hour week,” the study said. “In only 22 counties out of more than 3,000 counties nationwide can a full-time minimum wage worker afford a one-bedroom rental home at fair market rent.”

In the report, Independent U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders of Vermont wrote that stable and affordable housing is vital for people to live with dignity. Without it, economic opportunity is a pipe dream.
“It is difficult for families to keep up, and near impossible to get ahead or save for retirement or higher education,” wrote Sanders. “Without a stable home, children suffer emotionally and at school. Seniors cannot possibly retire with dignity and respect.”

Sanders added that the housing market may have recovered for many, but the country nonetheless is in the midst of “an affordable housing crisis” — particularly the lowest-income families.

“In America today, nearly 11 million families pay more than half of their limited incomes toward rent and utilities,” he wrote. “That leaves precious little for other essentials, like food, transportation and health care — much less a few extra dollars to take your kid to see a movie.”

Photo credit: Shutterstock