With rising home prices and rents, middle-class Americans are now facing a housing affordability crisis that once was reserved for low-income households, according to a new report from the National Housing Conference (NHC).
The report, “Priced Out: When a Good Job Isn’t Enough,” finds 85 out of 390 metropolitan statistical areas (MSAs) require a 50% increase in salary or higher to afford a one-bedroom apartment since 2019. Fifty-nine MSAs require a salary increase of 50% or more to afford a two-bedroom apartment. In addition, almost half of the tracked occupations, 47%, cannot afford a two-bedroom apartment, with 32 MSAs requiring a salary exceeding $75,000.
For potential home buyers, nearly one-third of the MSAs require double the salary once needed to afford a home, and 45% of MSAs require six-figure incomes to purchase a typically priced home.
“These findings underscore the depth and breadth of the housing crisis, which is increasingly pricing out working families across the country—regardless of geography or profession,” said NHC president and CEO David M. Dworkin. “The housing affordability crisis in now hitting families in every metro area, for nearly every occupation.”
The report takes a deep dive into the affordability gaps in five diverse metros, utilizing data from NHC’s Paycheck to Paycheck database and showing that even occupations requiring advanced education and training are increasingly unable to afford housing costs. The analysis examines five theoretical workplaces—a construction site, a middle school, an auto shop, a law firm, and a dental office—as a broad cross-section of U.S. labor in Asheville, North Carolina; Boise, Idaho; Houston; Tampa, Florida; and Seattle.
Findings include:
• Half of construction site workers in Asheville earn less than the $59,840 needed to rent a one-bedroom apartment;
• In Boise, a middle school saw teachers, librarians, and counselors priced out of two-bedroom rentals by 2023, with librarians still unable to afford rent in 2024;
• Order clerks and customer service representatives can’t afford a one-bedroom rental in Houston;
• In Seattle, not a single occupation tracked could afford to buy a home last year, and only 50 of 285 occupations could afford a two-bedroom rental; and
• Legal assistance, earning $62,420, in Tampa cannot afford rent for a one-bedroom apartment.
“This is no longer a problem we can frame as affecting only certain groups or regions. From big cities to small towns, Americans who work hard, earn solid incomes, and contribute to their communities are finding that neither renting nor buying is within reach,” Dworkin added. “If we don’t address the supply shortage, reform zoning, and invest in housing at all income levels, we are facing a fundamental threat to the health and sustainability of our economy.”