How much must Ohioans earn per hour to afford a modest two-bedroom apartment? It might be more than you think.
Full-time workers must earn more than $20 per hour ($20.81) to afford a two-bedroom apartment, according to a new report from the National Low Income Housing Coalition and the Coalition on Homelessness and Housing in Ohio .
That’s more than $40,000 a year. And, there’s a large gap between renters’ income and the cost of rent, according to the report.
In recent years, rent prices have increased rapidly, but income hasn’t kept pace. For instance, the so-called “housing wage” — or the amount workers must earn per hour to afford a two bedroom apartment — has increased 9% since last year.
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“Wages for Ohio’s most common jobs have increased significantly since the pandemic,” Ohio Coalition Executive Director Amy Riegel said in a media release. “Employers are trying to keep pace with inflation, but the skyrocketing cost of rent has effectively erased these wage gains, pushing affordable homes out of reach for a large swath of Ohio’s workforce.”