You need to earn $20.21 an hour to afford a 2-bedroom apartment in Utah, report says
A new report is shedding light on renting in Utah and how difficult it is to afford a place to live.
According to the Out of Reach 2021 report from the National Low Income Housing Coalition, you need to make $20.21 an hour to afford to rent a two-bedroom apartment or home in Utah.
That’s tough when the average renter’s hourly wage in the state is $15.66, according to the report.
Tara Rollins, executive director of the Utah Housing Coalition, said many renters in Utah are “living on the edge.”
The golden rule is pay 30 percent of your income to housing, and we have so many people that are paying more than 50 percent of their income to housing,” Rollins told 2News.
Nationally, the report said, the COVID-19 pandemic brought into sharper focus the need for a stronger safety net for people to be able to afford housing.
“Long after the public health dangers and economic crisis gradually recede, low-wage workers and low-income renters will continue to be in a precarious position, until we create permanent solutions to widespread housing unaffordability,” the report stated.
In Utah, the rental situation varies by county. Summit, Salt Lake, and Wasatch counties are the most expensive, requiring a higher wage to afford housing, according to the report. Other counties in more rural parts of the state are cheaper.
Rollins noted Utah relies on tourism and service industries which often pay workers lower wages, and that leads to difficulty finding affordable housing.
“We need to start investing in the infrastructure for the people in our state to be able to deliver A1 services and be able to live in the community that they work,” said Rollins.
The report recommends several federal solutions including expanding access to rental assistance for every household that needs it, increasing the supply of affordable housing units for those at the lowest income levels, and the creation of a permanent National Housing Stabilization Fund to help families with unexpected financial crises.
The report also recommends Congress strengthen protections for renters, housing voucher holders, and those who are being evicted.
To check out the full report and a breakdown of data by county in Utah, click here.
This report on renting came out on the same day new numbers showed another record month for housing prices in Utah, squeezing more people out of the market and putting homeownership further out of reach for many.
