As Habitat for Humanity of Southern Santa Barbara County recently accepted applications for the 12 new Habitat homes being built on Canon Perdido Street, we witnessed the negative impact that the high cost of rental housing and traditional mortgages have had on many working families in our community. Many middle and low-income families are priced out of the market due to the extremely high rental and home prices. According to the report: a minimum wage worker earning $8.00 an hour would have to work 130 hours a week, every week of the year, in order to make enough money to pay the fair market rent that is average for California. The situation is even worse in Santa Barbara where rental prices and home prices are higher than the state average.
Below is the report found at http://nlihc.org/oor/2012/CA:
Out of Reach 2012: California
In California, the Fair Market Rent (FMR) for a two-bedroom apartment is $1,353. In order to afford this level of rent and utilities – without paying more than 30% of income on housing – a household must earn $4,511 monthly or $54,127 annually. Assuming a 40-hour work week, 52 weeks per year, this level of income translates into a Housing Wage of $26.02.In California, a minimum wage worker earns an hourly wage of $8.00. In order to afford the FMR for a two-bedroom apartment, a minimum wage earner must work 130 hours per week, 52 weeks per year. Or a household must include 3.3 minimum wage earners working 40 hours per week year-round in order to make the two-bedroom FMR affordable.In California, the estimated mean (average) wage for a renter is $17.68. In order to afford the FMR for a two-bedroom apartment at this wage, a renter must work 59 hours per week, 52 weeks per year. Or, working 40 hours per week year-round, a household must include 1.5 workers earning the mean renter wage in order to make the two-bedroom FMR affordable.
