Affordable housing remains short in Merced County, report says

To afford a two-bedroom apartment at fair-market rent in Merced County, renters need to earn $14.60 per hour working full time, according to a report released Wednesday.

The report, Out of Reach 2015, was released by the National Low Income Housing Coalition, a Washington, D.C.-based research and advocacy organization, and the California Coalition for Rural Housing.

While Merced’s apartment rental costs of $759 a month ranked nearly the least expensive in the state, with only Imperial County showing a cheaper rent, it would require renters to make better than minimum wage to remain affordable. In Stanislaus County, a two-bedroom apartment costs $923, so the renter would have to make $17.75 per hour.

Rob Wiener, executive director of the California Coalition for Rural Housing, said a lack of affordable housing is a problem throughout the state. “When parents have to choose between rent and food, children can’t thrive,” he said. “When workers can’t afford to set down roots, businesses choose other places to invest in jobs.”

Affordable housing is defined as costing no more than 30 percent of a household’s gross income, which is a federal guideline. And fair-market rent is an annual estimate by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development that reflects the cost of rent and utilities.

Minimum-wage workers have to work extra hours to make up the difference. Working at the minimum wage of $9 in Merced County, a family would need a wage-earner to work at least 65 hours per week to afford the apartment. Stanislaus County renters would need two full-time jobs at the minimum wage rate to afford an apartment there.

Mark Hamilton, the city of Merced’s housing specialist, said the city is in need of more affordable housing, noting that cities across the state are in the same boat. The city’s U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development Annual Action Plan calls for more than 3,000 new housing units in town by 2021.

The city’s plan says 30 percent of those new units should be for very low-income families, 19 percent for low-income households, 17 percent for moderate-income and the rest for above moderate-income.

California is the third most expensive state in the nation for renters. Statewide, fair market rent is $1,386. So, on average, a worker in the state would need to make $26.65 at one full-time job, or work three jobs at minimum wage, to afford fair-market rent, the report says.

The most expensive California county to live in would be Marin, which would require a renter to make at least $39.65 an hour to afford the fair-market rent there.

The California Coalition for Rural Housing is calling on legislators to support state investment in affordable homes by approving Assembly Bills 1335 and 35, which would increase funding for affordable housing development and homelessness prevention.

The report also said there is no state in the country where a full-time minimum-wage worker could afford a two-bedroom apartment at fair-market rent.

This story was originally published May 21, 2015 at 11:35 AM with the headline "Affordable housing remains short in Merced County, report says."