Low-income earners are at greater risk of becoming homeless, a recent study by the National Low Income Housing Coalition revealed. | Courtesy of Unsplash
Low-income earners are at greater risk of becoming homeless, a recent study by the National Low Income Housing Coalition revealed. | Courtesy of Unsplash
Even a one-bedroom apartment is out of reach for individuals who earn minimum wage in every state, metro area or county, according to a recent report released by the National Low Income Housing Coalition.
The coalition's report, Out of Reach 2021: The High Cost of Housing, found that millions of low-wage earners were unable to afford the rent for their apartment or house both before and after the pandemic.
“To afford a basic two-bedroom apartment in South Carolina, a full-time worker must earn $18.08/hour. But the average renter only makes $13.97/hour. That $4.11 'housing wage gap' is a problem not just for household budgets, but also for our state's economic development,” tweeted Richland South Carolina Planning Commissioner Bryan P. Grady.
The study also found that millions of renters were at risk for contracting COVID-19 during the pandemic as they had to continue working outside of the home in order to make rent.
More than 7.5 million low-income renters spend more than half of their incomes on housing, the study said, putting them in a cost-burdened situation.
According to the study, 226,000 people in the U.S. lived as homeless or otherwise unsheltered in 2020, and 354,000 lived in emergency shelters without the ability to fully self-isolate during the pandemic, while 2.7 million renters live in overcrowded housing conditions.
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