La. lacks affordable housing for low-wage workers

By Christopher Tidmore
Contributing Writer

“There is no state in the union where a full-time, minimum-wage worker can afford to rent a one-bedroom apartment for less than 30 percent of his paycheck (which is a standard measure of housing affordability),” according to columnist Erza Klein. And Louisiana, particularly New Orleans Metro Area, is one of the worst locales in the South to survive on such a wage.

A new report by National Low-Income Housing Coalition tallies in each state the number of hours a worker would have to put in at his or her job each week to rent a one-bedroom apartment without it eating more than 30 percent of her wages.

In Louisiana, the Fair Market Rent (FMR) for a two-bedroom apartment is $805. In order to afford this level of rent and utilities — without paying more than 30% of income on housing — a household must earn $2,683 monthly or $32,200 annually. Assuming a 40-hour work week, 52 weeks per year, this level of income translates into an hourly Housing Wage of $15.48.

In Louisiana, the minimum Wage is $7.25. The Average Renter Wage is $13.13. The 2-Bedroom Housing Wage is the aforementioned $15.48, and the Number of Renter Households is 564,352, or 33 percent of the population.

Throughout the metro area, the wages needed to meet the ratio of rent to affordable household rank even higher, thanks to higher housing costs. In Jefferson, Orleans, Plaquemines, St. Bernard, and St. Charles parishes to reach the 30 percent of AMI threshold, one must earn $18.27 per hour.

This article originally published in the June 8, 2015 print edition of The Louisiana Weekly newspaper.