RI Rentals Among Most Unaffordable in US
Tuesday, May 03, 2011
Rhode Island housing rental costs are among the least affordable in the nation, according to a new report released yesterday by the National Low Income Housing Coalition.
The study, entitled Out of Reach 2011, says many Rhode Islanders are not earning enough money to keep up with skyrocketing housing costs.
In the wake of the economic recession, Rhode Island now has the 14th highest housing rental cost in the nation. Massachusetts, Connecticut and New Hampshire also rank in the top 15 states for unaffordable housing, but Rhode Island is 2nd in the country for the greatest increase in wages needed to afford reasonable housing.
GET THE LATEST BREAKING NEWS HERE -- SIGN UP FOR GOLOCAL FREE DAILY EBLAST“This report verifies what we are seeing day to day here in our state,” stated Brenda Clement, Executive Director for Housing Action Coalition of RI. “Despite the national trumpeting of a recovery, what we see on the frontlines is more and more Rhode Island families struggling to remain in their home or find an adequate, safe and affordable place to live.”
Cost increases nearly 70 percent
In the last 10 years, the wage needed to afford a two-bedroom house has increased 68 percent in Rhode Island. Without paying more that 30 percent of income on housing – which is federally considered the most a household should spend – a Rhode Islander must make at least $39,853 a year.
That translates into an hourly wage of $19.16.
However, in Rhode Island a minimum wage worker earns $7.40 an hour. In order to earn enough to pay for a two-bedroom apartment worth $996 a month, that worker would need to turn in 104 hours a week—or there would have to be 2.6 minimum wage workers in the household at 40 hours a week.
For the first time since the Great Depression, half of all Rhode Island renters are paying more for housing than they can afford. And as housing costs continue to grow, widespread homelessness becomes a legitimate concern.
Call for funding of state subsidies
Rhode Island also has some of the highest unemployment and foreclosure rates in the country. And in order to combat this growing threat of homelessness, affordable housing advocates are calling on policymakers to invest in programs like the Neighborhood Opportunities Program (NOP).
NOP is the only state-funded program that subsidizes the cost of affordable rental housing for very low-income families and individuals with disabilities. But because of the state budget crisis, programs for affordable housing like NOP are facing major budget cuts. Despite the fact that Rhode Island has one of the highest risks for homelessness, the state remains one of only nine states in the country without a dedicated stream of funding for affordable housing.
Jim Ryczek, Executive Director of the Rhode Island Coalition for the Homeless said, “This report reminds us why the state programs that support affordable housing and homeless prevention are so critical. Now, more than ever, we need our elected officials to act boldly to prevent more Rhode Island residents from slipping into homelessness.”
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