You Need $15 an Hour for This in Michigan

Finding affordable housing is a struggle for millions of families working low wage jobs, according to a new study that examines the effect of an improving economy on housing costs. (Photo via Flickr)

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The rebounding economy is literally leaving some low wage earners out in the streets, according to a new report examining a paradox that is affecting some 21 million Americans – the 30 percent of the workforce who work near-minimum-wage jobs.

In its study, “Out of Reach 2015,” the National Low Income Housing Coalition looked at regional differences in the hourly wage required to pay for a two-bedroom apartment, and plotted them on an interactive map. In Michigan, that’s $15.16 an hour – a little more than striking fast-food workers are asking for in protests that have become a social justice campaign centered on issues affecting America’s working poor.

At the 30th most expensive state to rent a two-bedroom apartment, Michigan is about average. In Hawaii, where the most expensive rental properties are located, it would take a $31.61-an-hour job to rent a two-bedroom apartment. Other high-rent areas are Alaska, California, Washington, the District of Columbia and a large cluster of states in the Northeast.

In those places, renters would have to earn more than $20 an hour, nearly three times more than the current minimum wage of $7.25, and more than $4 more than the estimated average wage of $15.16 earned by renters nationwide, according to the report.

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In the report’s preface, Oregon Gov. Kate Brown said that in her state and others, working families struggle to find affordable rental housing.

“There simply isn’t enough reasonably priced, decently maintained housing to meet the demand, and rapidly rising rents outpace wages,” she wrote. “As a result, one out of four households spends more than half their income on housing costs. People with low or fixed incomes face even bleaker situations.”

According to the report, 49 percent of renters in America have a cost burden, and 27 percent have a severe cost burden.

The nonprofit National Low Income Housing Coalition advocates for public policy supporting affordable and decent homes for America’s lowest wage earners,

(National Low Income Housing Coalition graphic, used with permission.)