Publications

Minimum-wage workers need three roommates or four jobs to afford a two-bedroom rental
Real Estate - JANUARY 31, 2023

To read this full article you need to be subscribed to Newsline.

Sign in Sign up for a FREE subscription

Minimum-wage workers need three roommates or four jobs to afford a two-bedroom rental

by Released

Only in 10 of the 50 largest U.S. cities can two full-time workers earning minimum wage comfortably afford a typical two-bedroom rental. Nationally, four minimum-wage workers would have to share two bedrooms to not stretch their budgets, according to a new Zillow® analysis shining a light on the impact of the country’s housing shortage.

In cities where there are higher-than-average rents but the minimum wage is also higher, workers tend to fare better. It takes 2.5 full-time workers on average spending 30 percent of their income to pay two-bedroom rent in cities with minimum wage set beyond the federal level.

“This is perhaps the only context in which San Francisco is more affordable than San Antonio,” said Nicole Bachaud, Zillow senior economist. “Renters have been squeez

Forgot your username or password?