Looking to rent a two-bedroom apartment in Portland? You’re going to need to make at least $23.88 per hour to afford it, according to a new report from the National Low Income Housing Coalition.
The coalition’s Out of Reach 2017 report looked at the gap between renters’ wages and the cost of rental housing. The study defines affordability as spending no more than 30 percent of your gross income on rent.
Housing wages, or what a renter would need to earn hourly to afford housing, varied widely across Oregon, as expected. While you need to make at least $23.88 per hour to afford a two-bedroom in the Portland-Vancouver-Hillsboro area, renters in the Salem area would need to earn $15.65 per hour, Corvallis area renters $17.88, and Baker County renters $13.10, according to the report.
The average renter in Oregon, who earns $14.84 per hour, could afford a rental that costs $771 per month, according to the report. However, fair market rent is $839 per month for a one-bedroom and $1,028 for a two-bedroom.
A minimum wage worker who earns $10.25 an hour can afford $533 per month in rent. That person would need to work 63 hours per week to afford a one-bedroom at fair market rent and 77 hours per week to afford a two-bedroom at fair market rent.
Oregon, which required at least a $19.78 per hour wage to afford a two-bedroom, had the 18th highest housing wage in the nation, according to the report.
Hawaii had the highest housing wage at $35.20 per hour, and Arkansas had the lowest housing wage of the 50 states at $13.72 per hour.
