Full-time minimum wage workers cannot afford a two-bedroom rental anywhere in the U.S. and cannot afford a one-bedroom rental in 95% of U.S.

In fact, the average minimum wage worker in the U.S. would need to work almost 97 hours per week to afford a fair market rate two-bedroom and 79 hours per week to afford a one-bedroom, NLIHC calculates.

The report, released Tuesday, defines “affordable” as spending no more than 30% of monthly income on rent, in line with what most budgeting experts recommend. Nationally, NLIHC puts the “housing wage” for 2020 — or what a full-time worker must make in order to afford a fair market rental without spending more than 30% of his or her income — at $23.96 per hour for a two-bedroom rental and $19.56 per hour for a one-bedroom.

That means even the average hourly worker who earns $18.22 per hour cannot afford rent, the report says. Many workers deemed essential during the coronavirus pandemic earn even less.

There was a housing affordability crisis even before the pandemic hit and tens of millions lost their jobs. Last year, the NLIHC’s report also found that a two-bedroom was not affordable anywhere in the country, putting the 2019 housing wage at $22.96 for a two-bedroom rental and $18.65 for a one-bedroom.

Coronavirus-related job losses hit the hospitality and service industries particularly hard, and renters make up a disproportionate share of those work forces, according to the Urban Institute. Additionally, it is not likely that the U.S.

With all of that as the backdrop, housing experts forecast a coming housing “apocalypse” at the end of July: Eviction bans put in place at the start of the pandemic are lifting, just as enhanced unemployment benefits expire. That could lead millions of households to face eviction and potentially homelessness as they choose between covering rent and basics like food and medicine.

“Pre-existing structural injustices,” like limited housing options, mean people of color already made up a disproportionate share of people experiencing homelessness in the U.S. before the pandemic, the report says.

Hispanic and Latino people were 18% of the population and 22% of those experiencing homelessness.

The House of Representatives has passed the Health and Economic Recovery Omnibus Emergency Solutions, or HEROES Act, and the Emergency Housing Protections and Relief Act of 2020 to address the crisis. Neither bill is expected to pass the Republican-controlled Senate.

Check out: The best credit cards of 2020 could earn you over $1,000 in 5 years.

Most people have to pay for housing, whether it’s a mortgage or rent and that can get expensive, especially for people with no income. If you can’t afford your rent, there are a variety of organizations and resources that can help, not only with providing short and long-term rent relief, but also with information that will help keep a roof over your head and resolve problems with your landlord.

The government stepped in to provide help, but their huge safety net goes away with the expiration of the federal eviction moratorium on October 3, 2021. The federal government’s stimulus bills combined to offer $46 billion in rent relief to cover rents during the pandemic, so landlords wouldn’t suffer financial hardship because of the ban on evictions.

The program was slow to take hold, though, as states struggled with how to get the money to landlords. A big issue was simply making tenants and landlords aware the money was there.

Treasury. The good news is that when the federal government announced the end of the eviction ban, it also issued guidelines to help states streamline the process of getting the relief money to those who need it.

Let’s take a look. The end of the eviction moratorium means it’s easier for landlords to evict tenants who can’t pay their rent, even if lack of payment is because they lost their job or much of their income during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Some states, including California and Washington, have their own moratoriums, which last until September. The website nolo.com keeps an up-to-date chart on state eviction bans and other tenant protections, with links to state websites.

If you’re facing eviction, some helpful resources are: Federal COVID-19 rent relief money is administered through state housing authorities.

Households can be covered for up to 12 months’ worth of rent for bills incurred through December 2021. But housing authorities don’t just do this during a pandemic – their sole purpose is to help people keep a roof over their head.

The website publictableau.com also has a table specific to COVID-19 rent relief that lists the programs, with links, for every state. Aside from rent relief specific to COVID-19, there are many charities and organizations that help people who can’t pay their rent.

The National Coalition of State Housing Authorities has links to each state’s housing authority-administered emergency rental assistance program. Community Action Agencies exist in every state and are set up to help people with challenges including housing, education and childcare.

It has extensive assistance programs that not only help with housing, but also food and paying other bills. The Salvation Army can help with temporary housing and other needs, with services that vary by locality.

Twenty-five states have some form general assistance, or general relief, programs that are administered through the town or city government, for people who have no other recourse and need financial help. These programs generally don’t provide cash, but do help applicants find resources.

There’s also help available for those who need housing assistance on a more long-term basis. The Department of Housing and Urban Development has a long-term rental assistance program that’s set up to provide safe, decent public housing for individuals, families, seniors and those with disabilities.

HUD’s Housing Choice Voucher Program is also available to help cover rent in private housing. Its Home Invest program supports nonprofits and other organizations that develop affordable housing.

The pandemic has made some state governments recognize that keeping people in their rental housing is about more than whether the tenant can pay rent. Many states are looking at ways to keep tenants from being evicted that go beyond simple rent relief.

A whopping 68.8% of tenants surveyed were unaware. Lack of information about eviction rights and resources was found to lead to more evictions.

A study by the Maine Coalition for Affordable Housing found that legal representation is one of the most effective ways for tenants to avoid eviction. Tenants with an attorney were 85% more likely to avoid an eviction judgment than those without representation.

Research also has found women and people of color are more likely to be evicted for not paying rent, and that low-income women, especially those of color, have the highest risk of eviction. Domestic violence victims and families with children are also at particularly high risk.

Many states are how considering bills that look at some of the issues leading to eviction, and adding tenant protections, particularly making sure renters are provided with information and resources. » More About: How Much Rent Can I Afford.

After you create your home-buying budget, you may find that you can’t afford your housing market. But don’t freak out just yet.

I’m gonna come right out and say it: If you don’t have the money, you shouldn’t buy a house. Period.

But you can start saving.

Maybe you’re still paying off debt or saving a down payment. Maybe you live where your home-buying budget can’t support a mortgage just yet.

It’s better to rent for a while and get in a good place with your money than have a house consume your whole world.

It helps you build up your savings—and patience. Plus, you get to call the landlord when something breaks instead of spending your hard-earned money to fix it.

If you want to buy a home in a pricey market, waiting may be your smartest move. In the meantime, keep saving.

Another option is to revisit your must-have list. A remodeled four-bedroom craftsman home on an acre lot might be out of your price range, so think about what you can change.

And remember, your first home won’t be your forever home. It doesn’t need to have everything on your wish list because you’re probably going to move one day anyway.

Letting go of the idea of a luxury kitchen or gleaming hardwood floors might be tough, but it’s worth it to avoid getting in over your head financially. (It’s okay to have nice stuff, just don’t let your nice stuff have you.) Remember, you can always upgrade your home’s features down the road.

When you work with a real estate agent to get your expectations in line with what you can afford, you’d be surprised to find out you still have some great options.

Or maybe you enjoy the peace and quiet of a suburban or country neighborhood. But broadening your search might change your mind about where you actually want to be.

While the differences between housing costs in cities and suburbs might flip-flop in an unusual market, home prices are usually more affordable outside the metro area.

In fact, recent data shows that 91% of suburban counties are seeing more inbound migration (people moving in) than outbound migration (people moving out). But in cities, it’s the opposite: 82% of cities have more people leaving than moving in.

You may be stuck in a market where homeownership will always feel a little out of reach (I’m looking at you, Silicon Valley). But if you’re open to it, relocating can fast-track your home-buying dream.

Moving out of a housing market you can’t afford gives you a chance to get the most bang for your buck and save up for a down payment faster. And the good news is, you don’t have to go far—most people who move stay in the same state or general area.8 It might only take moving a few miles across the county line.

Okay, you lowered your expectations and broadened your search—and you still can’t find a house you can afford. What now.

I know, getting a new job or moving to a new city can be scary, especially if you’re comfortable right where you are. But if buying a house is really important to you, you’ll have to face your fears and get uncomfortable.

Before you start your job search, figure out the minimum salary you’ll need to buy a house. Like I mentioned earlier, your monthly house payment (including principal, interest, insurance and HOA fees) should be no more than 25% of your take-home pay.

Say you find a nice little starter house for $240,000. If you plug that price into our mortgage calculator, you’ll see that the monthly payment (including principal, interest, insurance and HOA fees) is $2,065 (with a 6% interest rate and a 20% down payment).

Why 25%. I recommend this percentage so you’re not house poor when most of your paycheck goes toward the mortgage.

Ask a real estate agent for advice about how to target your search to areas you can afford.

Maybe you see one of your neighbors with a fancy new lawnmower or a snazzy-looking sports car. I’m sure I’m not the only one who splurged on something I thought would be life-changing only for it to end up stuffed in a kitchen cabinet or the back of my closet a few weeks later.

Stop comparing your life to everyone else’s. Yes, you might really want a house, but don’t let that blind you into making a big financial mistake—like buying a home you can’t afford.

Stay far away from those, and above all, stick to your budget.

But let’s face it—life changes pretty fast. One day, you’re young and carefree.

Let’s talk about what affording a house looks like for your generation—and how you can use your stage of life to your advantage.

You have a huge advantage in the housing market because you’ve had a lifetime to build up equity in your current house. You can use that equity wisely by selling your current home and paying cash for something smaller.

Don’t have much (or any) equity. Think carefully about how you plan to pay for your new home.

You’re about halfway through your career, the kids are growing up and heading off to college or trade school, and it feels like the right time to move.

The trick here is to make sure your new home doesn’t put your financial future at risk. You should still put yourself in a good position to retire—without risking the kids’ college funds.

Millennials are building their careers and families. You might feel like you’ll never be able to afford a house by the time you’re done paying for groceries and diapers.

Your generation is now the backbone of the American workforce—so you’ve got tons of opportunities to earn money and save for a home.

Don’t rush into a purchase you feel pressured to make. First, take control of your money—then you’ll be able to afford a house.

Okay, I’m super impressed you’re already thinking about how to afford a house. Your biggest advantage is you’ve got loads of time, which is a good reason you shouldn’t buy just yet.

But you can start taking steps to buy a house in a few years. The best way to do that is by working the 7 Baby Steps.

One of the biggest factors affecting home affordability is a shortage of homes for sale. Housing inventory across the country has been down for years.9 Remember the law of supply and demand.

So not only is it tough to find a home you can afford, but chances are, you’ll also be up against other buyers when you do. That’s where an experienced real estate agent comes in.

And the best real estate agents are RamseyTrusted. You can count on them to come up with a home-buying plan that works for you.

Find an expert real estate agent in your local market.

Okay, so you’ve crunched the numbers and decided that, for now, buying a house isn’t going to happen. That’s no biggie—it’s okay to rent.

You might just be starting out after leaving your parents’ house, or you might be working hard to get out of debt. Whatever your reason for renting, you’re in good company—more than 100 million people in America are renters.1.

Let’s dig into how much you should spend on rent, plus why you shouldn’t feel bad about renting.

That means if you’re bringing home $4,000 a month, your monthly rent should cost you $1,000 or less. And remember, that’s 25% of your take-home pay—meaning what you bring in after taxes.

We know, 25% might seem like a low number to you. After all, there are plenty of people who spend a lot more than that on their housing costs.

Sure, you’ll still be able to pay for food and put gas in your car, but you won’t have a whole lot left to spend on life’s other necessities (and, no, goat yoga is not a necessity).

We call that house poor—aka broke. Don’t volunteer to be broke by paying too much for rent.

Get out that fancy graphing calculator you haven’t used since 10th-grade algebra class. Just kidding, this isn’t complicated at all.

To calculate how much you should spend on rent, you need to know your monthly take-home pay—your gross pay minus any tax or health insurance withholdings. You can figure this out by looking at your paystub or (if you have direct deposit) simply looking at your bank account to see your monthly deposits from your employer.

Then, multiply your take-home pay by 0.25. Ta-da.

Here’s an example:. Simple, right.

Income. Rent You Can Afford.

$710. $50,000.

$60,000. $1,040.

$1,260. $90,000.

And by the way, you should keep renting until you’ve paid off all your debt, built a full emergency fund worth 3–6 months of your typical expenses, and saved up a strong down payment for a house (more on that later).

Let’s talk about it.

Most states require landlords to give advanced notice of raises—usually 30 days—and some local governments even put limits on how much landlords can hike up your costs.

If you’re already renting and facing a price increase, double-check the laws in your area to make sure your landlord isn’t stepping out of line. (One downside of renting is that rent usually goes up from year to year.).

You can still negotiate.

So, if you’re a good tenant (as in, you make your payments on time and don’t break stuff), you should remind your landlord of that. Keeping you around—and not having to risk renting your place to a deadbeat—could be just the motivation your landlord needs to be more reasonable on a rent hike.

You may also be able to talk your landlord down if you offer to sign an extended lease, like 18 months instead of 12. Or if you do some research and find your new rent would be above market value, you’d have a good argument on your hands.

If you’re still stuck with a rent raise, and the new payment is too pricey for you, then it’s time to look for a new place to live.

The answer depends on several factors, the most important being what you can afford. Remember: When you’re trying to figure out what you can afford to rent, keep that 25% number at the top of your mind.

Traditionally, renting an apartment has almost always been cheaper than renting a house. But as prices continue to rise, that may not be true for you.

The average price for a one-bedroom apartment in the U.S. is now at $1,176 a month.2 Even though the cost of renting a house has also gone up, it can still be the more affordable option if you’ve got roommates to split the payment with.

For example, a three-bedroom house with a monthly rent of $2,400 will only run you $800 if it’s split three ways. That’s nearly $400 cheaper than the cost of the average one-bedroom apartment.

Plus, the cost difference in renting a house versus an apartment will vary based on where you live. For example, getting into a house in the heart of New York City isn’t exactly a realistic option for most folks.

That’s why, when you’re deciding between renting a house versus an apartment, you need to figure out two things: 1) how many people you’ll be living with, and 2) where you’ll be living. Once you nail that down, do some research and see which option is the most affordable.

She had filled their Phoenix apartment with reminders that things could be worse, and now they were, so Katrina Taylor tried to sort through what was left. Already gone was her jewelry, the kitchen table and the motorcycle, all of it sold to make another month’s rent.

“Are we gonna move. ” asked her 6-year-old grandson, Caleb.

“So we can get you back in school.”. “What if we don’t.

“Well,” she said, “we’ll figure it out.”. For two years she’d somehow done that, scraping through each month on food stamps and $220 in cash assistance.

Katrina, 51, knew she couldn’t afford it, but the landlord needed a month’s notice of whether she would move out or stay another year. Every other apartment she found cost even more.

A decade after the Great Recession, Katrina had crashed into the new American housing crisis: a flood of people entering the rental market, a trend of nationwide rent prices rising faster than incomes, and a breakdown of the government program designed to bridge the gap.

Still, the Department of Housing and Urban Development reported to Congress that 7.7 million poor American households have severe housing needs. For every 100 low-income households, there are only 39 affordable places to live.

Some Arizona families wait as long as six years. Katrina was No.

Every day Katrina dialed the same phone numbers and heard the same answers: She qualified for government help, but would have to wait. MORE:HUD cuts: Goodbye affordable housing in Arizona.

Her only choice was to make it work in the meantime, scrambling to find the next step without worrying the kids. For once she felt helpless, staring across the thin line between making it in America and moving two young grandchildren to spare couches and guest rooms.

Each morning, she scrawled the date on a chalkboard propped against the wall. She had five days to decide.

Three.

” Katrina asked the kids as they pulled on coats for school. They gathered around a sheet of paper on the refrigerator with six hand-drawn faces, each showing a different emotion.

Katrina reminded herself to be home in time for her ride to a doctor’s appointment. THE NEW HOUSING CRISIS | PART 1: Can’t afford the rent, can’t afford to move | PART 2: 60 days to find a home | PART 3: ‘Here for the eviction’ | PART 4: $200 from home | PART 5: ‘It just has to go’ | PART 6: Into the trees | PART 7: Rapid evictions, few options.

They climbed on for the short ride to Desert View Elementary, where the teachers seemed to care and sometimes sent Caleb home with a sack of food for the weekend. Katrina sat in the back of the bus and pulled the kids close.

But the bus was late. She took out her phone to check the time, and it rang.

She was late, the driver told her, snapping over the phone. He was already waiting at her apartment.

“If you cannot stay,” she said, apologizing, “please go ahead and go.”. “I’m waiting on you,” he said again.

“I can’t control this.”.

125, down the street from a condo Katrina used to rent. She moved into the apartment two years ago, while everything was falling apart, because at $543 a month it was the cheapest she could find without making the kids change schools.

Katrina hung family photos by the front door and covered the kitchen walls with cling-on platitudes. “Bless this home with love and laughter,” one read.

Furniture was expensive and space was scarce, so they slept in one bed until someone at school found a trundle bed for the kids. Katrina packed while they slept.

Pressure built in the quiet, when all she could think about was the month ahead and the years that had gone by so fast. Everything had been under control.

She rode motorcycles with Bret Michaels from Poison and volunteered at the homeless shelter. Life was comfortable.

Then everything unraveled faster than she could adjust. The kids’ parents had used drugs and their father, Katrina’s only son, went to prison, after he was caught stealing things from a garage to sell online.

” Katrina offered, but now it had been two years and Katrina didn’t see herself giving them back anytime soon. Sometimes Kylie called her “Mama.” Katrina hadn’t figured out how to respond.

A lifetime of steroid use inflamed her intestines, but doctors couldn’t take her off them because they stifled her epilepsy. They removed her colon and made plans to remove part of her intestines every five years.

The kids wept quietly. Katrina thought she was going to die.

Her unemployment checks stopped coming last year. An application for disability benefits was floating somewhere in the Social Security system, as long as two years away from approval.

Now her landlord explained that rents had to go up, that she still offered the cheapest rates in the neighborhood, that $596 a month really was reasonable, but it didn’t matter. Katrina woke up and fell asleep thinking about money and how to get a little bit of help, trying not to let the kids see her cry.

Already Caleb’s teachers warned Katrina that he was acting out in class, that over the past few months he hadn’t seemed like himself. Sometimes he shouted over them.

“I want a nice, safe, clean home for them,” she said, one where the kids could have their own bedrooms and finally spend some time apart. Somewhere close to her doctors and the library.

And she could do all that, if she could hold on long enough to get a Section 8 voucher. That slip of white paper would let her rent an apartment from any landlord who would accept it, anywhere in the city.

The government would pay the rest. But that assistance was months away, maybe a year, or two or three.

A friend offered her guest room, but then decided she didn’t want three extra people in the house and told Katrina not to come. All the low-income apartments were more than she could afford.

So they would have to move.

But Phoenix was home now. It had been for 33 years, since she was 18 years old, drove into the city without a place to stay and slept in her car for a week.

Katrina didn’t recognize it. Everything was gone: the bright-green grass she used to play in, the trees in the front yard, the lilacs that made it feel like home.

Then it was torn down. Nobody told Katrina.

She heard the best way to get through was to keep calling, so the wait list became part of her routine: dialing and praying something had changed, always hearing nothing had. She tried again while waiting to pick up Kylie from school.

She crossed off each option she had left, preparing herself to accept a little bit of help. Her youngest brother, Keith, offered a spare room in his house in San Tan Valley, an hour’s drive from her north-central Phoenix neighborhood.

They rode the bus back to the apartment. Katrina chose which frozen soup she would thaw for dinner, and Kylie sat with a marker and a sheet of construction paper.

” Kylie asked, eyes locked on her drawing. “Most likely, that’s where we’re gonna go,” Katrina said.

“Yeah,” Kylie said softly. Katrina patted her on the head.

“Put it in some boxes.”. “I have junk stuff,” Kylie said.

“It’s all broke.”. “We.

It’s even tougher being a renter in New York City these days. Rents for new leases are back to hitting records highs.

Getting a substantial rent increase that you can’t afford can feel like a big blow. It can be even harder if you weren’t planning on moving—and haven’t budgeted for those additional expenses.

For example, if you have a good history with your landlord, you can try to negotiate a smaller rent increase in order to stay put. To position yourself as a desirable tenant who deserves a little discount, don’t sweat the small stuff, recommends Kimberly Jay, a broker at Compass.

“A good tenant is an invisible tenant” in this market,” she says. Be sure to do some homework too, says Mary Hall Mayer, an agent at Coldwell Banker Warburg.

Listings sites like StreetEasy will give you a sense of what landlords are asking (not the rent being paid) and how long units are available, giving you “an idea of what and how quickly something rented versus the current listings,” Mayer says. Crunch the numbers and see if it’s worth moving or if you can take these numbers to your landlord to help you negotiate.

To help make the best decision, here are five options to consider if your lease is up and you’re facing a rent increase that you can’t afford. [Editor’s note: A previous version of the article ran in January 2022.

If you don’t sign a new lease, and your landlord continues to accept your rent check each month, you are automatically considered a month-to-month tenant. This is a good option if you want the flexibility to leave at any time—you only need to give 30-days notice.

And while the terms of the old lease apply, a landlord can still raise your rent. For more information, check out “5 things you should know about renting month to month in NYC.”.

Studios are also a good option if you’ve lost your roommate and can’t afford a one bedroom. Not all studios are alike, so check out “Considering a NYC studio apartment.

Adjina Dekidjiev, a broker at Coldwell Banker Warburg, says being flexible about where you live and considering more affordable areas in Brooklyn or Queens is key. Want to remain in Manhattan.

Also, Upper Manhattan, Harlem, the Upper West Side in the 90s and 100s, and the Financial District. Want more intel.

Here are NYC’s most affordable neighborhoods for renters.”. To save cash on your new place, look for no-fee apartments.

Read “How to find a low- or no-fee apartment in NYC: Brick Underground’s best advice.”. Looking for a more affordable rental.

Place your search into the capable hands of The Agency, a tech-savvy real estate brokerage that’s helped hundreds of Brick Underground readers find their ideal NYC apartments. Bonus: The agents at The Agency are not only a delight to deal with, they will charge a broker’s fee of 10 percent of a year’s rent on open listings instead of the usual 12 to 15 percent if you sign up here.

Another option is to take over someone else’s lease—on sites like Leasebreak you can find listings from renters who need to get out of their lease early. It’s a more flexible option and cheaper too.

To learn more check out “Brick Underground’s best advice on subletting a New York City apartment” and “How to rent a short-term, furnished apartment in NYC without getting scammed.”. Finding a roommate is a time-tested way to make living here more affordable.

You have a right to a roommate in NYC—you just need to notify your landlord and provide their name. Be aware there are rules about what constitutes a legal bedroom—you can’t just put up a wall anywhere you want.

The city and state offer different programs for New Yorkers struggling to pay rent. Some options like the city’s One Shot Deal offer one-time assistance while programs like the City Family Homelessness & Eviction Prevention Supplement are long-term solutions if you qualify.

Here are 6 programs that might help.”. —Earlier versions of this article contained reporting and writing by Austin Havens-Bowen.

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Owning a home may be a lifelong goal for many Americans but that doesn’t mean it’s for everyone. Homeownership rates are currently high in the U.S., but this hasn’t always been the case.

Although it may not be ideal, renting does have its advantages, too. For some people renting might make more sense for their financial circumstances.

One of the benefits of renting a home is that there are no maintenance costs or repair bills. This means that when you rent a property, your landlord assumes full responsibility for all maintenance, improvement, and repairs.

Homeowners, on the other hand, are responsible for all home repair, maintenance, and renovation costs. Depending on the nature of the task (and whether multiple jobs pop up at the same time), it can get quite pricey.

Another financial benefit of renting is having access to amenities that would otherwise be an enormous expense. Luxuries such as an in-ground pool or a fitness center come standard at many midscale to upscale apartment complexes with no additional charge to tenants.

If a homeowner wanted to have access to these amenities, they would likely have to spend thousands of dollars for installation and maintenance. Condo owners aren’t exempt from these costs either.

One of the major benefits of renting versus owning is that renters don’t have to pay property taxes. Real estate taxes can be a hefty burden for homeowners and vary by county.

Although property tax calculations can be complex, they are determined based on the estimated property value of the house and the amount of land on which it’s built. With new constructions getting larger and larger, property taxes can be a significant financial burden to homeowners.

Another area where renters have a better financial deal is the up-front cost. Renters generally have to pay a security deposit that is equal to one month’s rent.

This deposit is theoretically returned to them when they move out, provided they haven’t damaged the rental property.

Of course, that down payment results in having equity in the home, which only increases as the mortgage is gradually paid off. And once you own a home free and clear, you have a valuable investment that renters never attain.

Still, the amount needed for a down payment on a home is significantly more than a rental security deposit. A 20% down payment on a house with a market value of $200,000 is $40,000.

Those who don’t have money for a down payment are better off renting.

Living in an expensive city such as New York may be out of reach for most home buyers, but it is entirely possible for renters. Although rents can be high in areas where home values are also high, renters are more apt to find an affordable monthly payment than home buyers.

Mortgage lending discrimination and rental discrimination are illegal. If you think you’ve been discriminated against based on race, religion, sex, marital status, use of public assistance, national origin, disability, or age, there are steps you can take.

Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD).

Property values go up and down. While this may affect homeowners in a big way, it affects renters substantially less, if at all.

In a rocky housing market, renters may not be as adversely affected as homeowners.

This kind of flexibility is especially important for retirees who want a less costly, smaller alternative that matches their budget.

Also, if a homeowner has invested a significant amount of money in renovations, the selling price might not cover these costs, leaving them unable to afford to sell and move.

While landlords can raise the rent with notice, you can budget more efficiently, because you know the amount of rent you are required to pay.

But adjustable-rate mortgages (ARMs) can fluctuate, often resulting in rising mortgage payments due to higher interest charges. Property taxes are another variable that can increase costs for homeowners but don’t affect renters.

While homeowners need to maintain a homeowners insurance policy, the equivalent for renters is a renter’s insurance policy. This kind of policy is much cheaper and covers nearly everything owned, including furniture, computers, and valuables.

Although homes can vary in size, they are typically larger than rental apartments. As a result, they are more costly to heat and also can have higher electric bills.

Owning a home can be beneficial for homeowners over the long run due to the amount of equity they acquire in their home. Renters have nothing tangible to show for years of rental payments.

Of course, it depends on an individual’s lifestyle, financial situation, what they can afford to pay in monthly rent, and whether they’re working or in retirement.

Although living in a city can provide you unbeatable work opportunities and professional connections, being able to live close to those opportunities is becoming more and more difficult to afford. Incomes have stagnated while rent and general cost of living has increased, which is creating a less than favorable rent-to-income ratio in many areas.

From coast to coast and everywhere in between, here are 166 cities where you can’t afford to live comfortably on the median income, as well as a closer look at the top 25 cities for income to rent disparities. When apartment-hunting, it’s important to know your budget and stick to it.

But you also have other essential expenses to consider like utilities, food, transport, entertainment and savings. That’s why there’s a general rule you should follow to make sure you’re setting yourself up for financial success as a renter.

If you follow this rule, you should be able to budget for all your other necessary expenditures, including accounting for income taxes. But there are many cities where only spending 30 percent on rent is easier said than done.

are located on the coasts. These coastal cities have long been some of the country’s top centers of culture and commerce.

Residents of this central Florida city spend nearly half of their income on rent, which is a real surprise considering Kissimmee is located just south of Orlando. But therein lies its appeal.

Living in the Big Easy isn’t so easy these days for renters, with almost half of the monthly checks going to rent. But it’s easy to see why people are still drawn to New Orleans, even with the steep cost of living.

Can’t afford New York City prices. Decamp about half an hour up the Hudson to Yonkers.

You’re still paying “close to New York City prices” when it comes to rent, but it’s still more affordable than the city itself or closer spots like the next city of the list.

But living in Jersey City gives you near-instant access to N.Y.C., as well as plenty of local attractions like the Liberty State Park, great museums like the Ellis Island Museum and dining to rival the food scene across the river.

But for those craving the charms of Florida without the crowds that flock to neighboring cities and beaches, Deerfield Beach delivers with its under-the-radar amenities like pristine beaches, lush parks and urban green areas, numerous outdoor activities like golf and cable skiing, laid-back vibes and access to nearby Miami’s cosmopolitan thrills.

Chicago blows half of your monthly take-home out of your wallet each month to cover rent, but if you can take the high costs and blustery gales that earned this city its nickname, you’ll be rewarded.

Sitting on the shores of Lake Ontario with Canada just across the border, the city of Rochester may not immediately come to mind as being so expensive, but its world-renowned universities and institutes and tech industry keep it a bustling place to live. Locals get to enjoy a fantastic music scene, intriguing museums and abundant green spaces and easy access to wilderness areas and activities close by.

Connected to mainland Miami by bridges, the island paradise of Miami Beach costs a pretty penny for renters. Under the fierce Florida sun, the past and the present swirl together, with sleek, ocean-view high-rises setting up shop next to historic Art Deco buildings.

As the cost of living in San Francisco soars, many Bay Area residents and new arrivals are heading across the waters to Oakland, where you can expect more than half of your monthly income to go to rent. But Oakland is a thriving, enthralling city in its own right, with a flourishing food scene, beautiful architecture, innovative art, ample parks and green areas and an entire lake near downtown.

Nestled among the foothills of the Rockies, Boulder is one of Colorado’s fastest-growing cities, as outdoor recreation and nature lovers ditch Denver to live right next door to their beloved hiking and mountain-biking trails, and entrepreneurs come for the start-up culture.

Home to renowned museums and cultural institutions like the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, a network of protected nature reserves that offers easy access to outdoor fun and more, Cleveland finds the perfect balance between urban and natural fun. While more affordable than other East Coast metropolitan areas, you’re still looking at using mroe than half your monthly income for rent.

Picturesque and rife with history, Hartford was a center for the abolitionist movement of the 19th century and home to legendary writers like Harriet Beecher Stowe and Mark Twain. Its rich past still shows through its architecture, monuments and museums.

This diverse, multicultural city full of nature and history is just a short drive from Boston, making it an ideal option for commuters who don’t mind the drive. If you’re looking to avoid the prices in the Boston area, Lawrence is much more affordable but still on the higher end of the scale, with the average rent-to-income ratio being more than 50 percent.

Pennsylvania’s largest city is also one of the most important in early American history. It was in Philadelphia that the Declaration of Independence and the U.S.

History buffs will always have a field day here, but there’s plenty else to enjoy, including sports (the city is home to the Eagles, Phillies, Flyers and the 76ers for football, baseball, hockey and basketball, respectively) and noshing on famous local foods like hoagies and Philly cheesesteaks.

With history stretching back to the 1600s, it’s best known for being the home of Yale University. As a college town, you’ll find plenty of academic diversions, such as elegant libraries and museums, and the natural beauties of New England’s forests and waterways offer plenty of outdoor activities.

Providence‘s past glory as a center of manufacturing has evolved into a sterling reputation for higher education, thanks for local Ivy League member Brown University and the Rhode Island School for Design, one of the nation’s top art schools. Outside of education, healthcare is also a major player.

Although Detroit fell from the lofty heights of being the home of the U.S. auto industry and birthing Motown, through hard work and dedication, it’s slowly starting to rebound, with new industries taking hold, urban revitalization and the renewal and preservation of some of the city’s architectural treasures.

But there’s still a long way to go, so even with new jobs and opportunities popping up, the cost of rent is still high compared to income.

Good weather year-round. The one and only Hollywood.

Everyone with a dream of making it big in the movies comes here, and many come here anyway just for the fine weather, endless art and entertainment and diverse food. But even this sprawling city is packed to bursting, and the average rent prices prove it.

In no county or metropolitan area can a full-time worker earning minimum wage afford a two-bedroom rental at fair market rent. That’s according to the latest report from the National Low Income Housing Coalition that documents the gap between full-time minimum wage work and affordable rents across the country, underscoring that severity with which the affordability crisis hits low-income renters in particular.

In Houston, the amount a full-time worker has to earn to afford such an apartment without spending more than the recommended 30 percent of their income on housing varies by zip code. In some zip codes, like 77007 west of downtown, a worker’s hourly earnings would have to exceed $30 while for others, like 77011 on the east side, earnings would have to be around $16 per hour.

Hourly wage needed to afford a fair market two-bedroom rental house in each zip code without spending more than 30 percent of that income on housing. Source: National Low Income Housing Coalition.

The average renter wage is $18.20, according to the report, not far from the hourly wage of $19.32 needed to afford a two-bedroom apartment. For folks earning minimum wage, however, they would need to work 86 hours just to afford a fair market one-bedroom rental home without spending more than 30 percent of their income.

But that picture changes in the state’s metro areas. In Harris County, for example, where 45 percent of residents are renters, a worker would need to earn $20.50 to comfortably afford a fair market, two-bedroom rental, which rent for about $1,066 per month, according to the federally-determined fair market rents used to conduct the analysis.

Meanwhile in Travis County, home to Austin, 48 percent of residents are renters and those renters need to earn around $24.06 per hour to afford a fair market-rent two-bedroom apartment there. Someone earning minimum wage would need to work 133 hours a week to afford that comfortably.

For Houston’s low-income renters, this is not news. The metropolitan area recently ranked third worst when it came to affordable and available units for extremely low income renters, who earn 30 percent or below of the area’s median income.

“Congress must address this gap by fully funding key federal housing assistance programs,” according to the coalition. “These programs include Housing Choice Vouchers, the national Housing Trust Fund, public housing, project-based rental assistance, and other federal rental housing programs serving the lowest income households.”.

Getting a notice from your landlord that your rent is increasing would ruin anyone’s day. Unfortunately, this stress-inducing reality has been happening across the country as reports of rental rates hitting an all-time high have been making headlines regularly.

After the initial shocks wear off (and the superlatives subside) it’s time to start thinking about your options for dealing with a rent increase. Keep reading to find out what you can do when your landlord raises the rent.

Like most industries, the rental market responds to economic trends creating conditions for owners to ask more or less for rent depending on their region. It turns out, that most landlords do not regularly raise their rent to match the cost of owning and maintaining a property.

Suddenly, after 5 years of affordable rent, you might see a sudden 10-25% increase. For a lot of renters, a 25% increase could price them out of their current rental property.

A $30 increase each year is a lot easier to stomach than a $150 increase after nothing for 5 years.

State laws dictate how much notice a landlord must give before raising the rent on a month-to-month agreement. If you are on a lease, good news, your landlord cannot raise the rent on you.

Some states, like Oregon, prevent rent increases in the first year of month-to-month tenancy and set longer periods of required notice before a rent increase takes place. A quick Google search of “[Your state] rent increase notice” should reveal how much time your landlord must give before raising the rent.

If you think this is you, you need to contact a landlord-tenant attorney to start building a case. *Rent increases like those described above are legal in areas that do not have rent control or rent-stabilization acts in place.

You don’t need to decide today if you are staying or going. But you do need to make a plan to think about your finances.

If the new rent is going to price you out of your household budget, finding a less expensive rental is what needs to happen. Do not put additional strain on your finances by living in a place you cannot afford.

You might discover that rents have gone up universally in your area and your landlord is asking for a reasonable price. Would it be worth the moving expenses to find a comparable property with comparable rent.

Before you start paying the higher rate or perusing the rental ads, have a professional and honest conversation with your landlord. Tell your landlord you are concerned with the rising rent prices and that you will probably have to move.

This tactic will only work if you get along with your landlord and have a history of on-time rent payments. You have to be prepared for them to say no.

Be professional, empathic, reasonable, and never get angry or defensive. I have heard the success of renters talking a 10% rent increase down to 5%, with the knowledge that the rent will increase by another 5% in a year, but at least it wasn’t such a steep jump.

Landlords cannot raise the rent on you during a fixed-term lease agreement. If you are tired of your landlord raising the rent every year, ask your landlord if you can sign a lease for 1 or 2 years.

In most cases, your landlord will agree to a long lease agreement, because that means they will not have to deal with releasing the property, turnover, or vacancy. If you already have a history of on-time rent payments and good landlord-tenant relationship your landlord should be open to a long-term lease agreement.

Move Out. In some cases, the only thing to do will be to move.

Moving away from your city center or job can reduce your housing expenses. however, it may also make your commuting expenses go up.

If you live in a tight rental market, with limited vacancies, be sure to communicate your moving plans to your landlord. They might be reasonable about giving you an extension to live on the property at your current rate until you find a new property.

Remember that your current landlord will need to give you a good reference in order for you to find a new place. Prevent Rent Increases – Be a Great Tenant.

In general, landlords hate finding new tenants. Turnover is expensive and time-consuming.

pay your rent on time or early every month) there is a chance that your landlord will avoid raising the rent on you. This is not always the case, as some rent increases are inevitable but every renter should strive to be a good tenant.

Unfair Rent Increases. If you think that your rent increase is unfair or is done in retaliation to get you to move, you can contact a landlord-tenant attorney in your state to talk about your options.

Have you recently gotten a notice that your rent is increasing. Let us know what you did in the comments.

This post was originally published August 12, 2016, and was updated on July 8, 2022.

Now, these pros and cons don’t change the answer to the question, Should I buy or rent. They just help you prepare for the option that’s right for you.

And that trendy apartment you love might come with some nosy neighbors.

Find expert agents to help you buy your home. There you have it.

Renting an apartment is usually cheaper than buying a house. But renting a house instead of an apartment could cost more than the mortgage payment on that same house.

If you look at monthly costs alone though, homeownership usually tips the scale to the pricey side because you pay for maintenance, taxes and homeowners insurance on top of your mortgage.

But there’s a tipping point: If you rent for decades, you could end up paying more than if you’d bought a house in the first place. That’s because a house payment will stay the same while rents go up (unless you have an adjustable-rate mortgage, in which case your mortgage goes up too).

Before you buy a home, you need to make sure your financial house is in order. That starts with getting out of debt.

For first-time home buyers, I recommend at least a 5–10% down payment on a 15-year fixed-rate mortgage. (Stay far away from FHA and VA loans.) If you can save 20% for a down payment, you won’t have to pay private mortgage insurance (PMI)—which could save you a couple hundred bucks a month.

And when you’re deciding what you can spend on a house, make sure your mortgage payment (including principal, interest, property taxes, homeowners insurance, PMI and HOA fees) will be 25% or less of your take-home pay.

Because if you’re drowning in debt or don’t have a down payment saved, you’re not in a position to buy a house, bottom line.

Location is a big one. If you want to live in the city or part of town with good schools and crazy expensive homes, renting might be more affordable than buying.

Here’s something else to think about: If you don’t see yourself living in the same city for a few years, don’t buy a home there. You usually want to stay in a house at least three years to avoid losing money when you sell it.

And once you buy a home, are you willing and able to maintain it. Mowing grass, cleaning gutters, replacing furnace filters—you’ll either need to do these things yourself or hire someone to do it for you (and that costs money).

Owning a home is great, but the repair and maintenance costs can really add up. So remember, the monthly rent or mortgage payment isn’t the only expense to consider.

Before deciding whether to rent or buy, let’s look at how to crunch the numbers on both.

Rental listings should give you an idea of the cost of rent, plus utilities and other fees. Don’t overlook hidden fees.

And if you bring Rover along to your rental, you’ll usually have to pay a pet fee too.

You can plug those prices and your down payment amount into our mortgage calculator to figure out your monthly payment—including principal and interest, taxes, homeowners insurance and HOA dues. This amount should be no more than 25% of your take-home pay.

Internet, streaming services and trash collection will add at least another $100.1. I ran some numbers through our mortgage calculator for a $300,000 home.

And with $400 for utilities and other services, you’re looking at about $3,000 a month. If that number gives you heartburn, you’ll need to look for a cheaper house or keep renting.

I talk to a lot of home buyers, and unfortunately, many of them regret their purchases because they bought for the wrong reason. I don’t want you to fall into the same trap as they did.

You found the perfect house, and the sellers are practically giving it away. It just might be the deal of the century.

Wrong. When it comes to real estate, you’re way better off buying the right home at the right time—not buying a house based solely on the market.

Have some patience. And remember, good deals are like buses: Another one will come along soon.

Many home buyers in their 20s and 30s feel a ton of pressure to buy a house because they think it’s the “grown-up” thing to do. The truth is, taking control of your money is the most grown-up thing you can do.

So, if you’re 25 and feel like you’re behind the curve because you haven’t bought a house yet, relax. Don’t rush into a big purchase just because your friends or family keep telling you that you should (remember, you don’t know their financial situation and you don’t want to take advice from broke people).

It’s much wiser to wait to buy until you’re financially ready. And trust me, no one has ever regretted waiting until they were ready for anything—especially a house.

If you’re not crazy about where you live, why would you buy a house there. And in the same vein, it doesn’t make sense to buy a house if you know you’re going to relocate for work or family reasons in the next year or two.

I want to repeat that renting is not a waste of money. Sure, you’re giving your money to the landlord.

And as long as you’re paying for a place to live, your money is well spent.

If you have student loans, credit card bills or any other debt to stomp out, consider your apartment your stomping ground. You can hang out there with your cheap renters insurance and let the landlord pay for all the maintenance while you knock out that debt.

If your rent is eating up too much of your paycheck, find a cheaper apartment so you have a better opportunity to get out of debt and save.

In most places, you’ll need to stay in a house for two to three years to make buying worth the up-front costs.

Like with any relationship, acting impulsively is never a smart move. So, if you just got married, graduated from college, or aren’t sure which neighborhood you want to live in, the smartest thing you can do is rent for a while.

Oh, friend. If you’re here, on this page, reading about how to feed yourself when you can’t afford to buy healthy food, I am so sorry you have found yourself in this situation.

In fact, it is a downright heart wrenching situation to be in. especially if you have kids and feel that you can’t afford to feed them the nutritious foods their bodies need.

I am far luckier these days, but I will never forget those days of struggling just to survive.

It can be caused by quite a few different causes. If you’re currently in an insecure situation about the food in your home, chances are good it is because of one of these causes.

While I know how discouraging it can be to say the words “I can’t afford to buy food” to your kids, the good news is that I can tell you from experience that it does not last forever. I know.

At the end of the day, the best place for you to be is right where you are. You are aware there is a problem and you are looking for the best ways to fix that problem.

See the issue, fix the issue. Just recognize that you may have some tough decisions ahead of you as you navigate the waters of not being able to afford enough food to meet the basic needs of your family.

While they may not all work for you and your family, hopefully they will give you a good place to start. If you have suddenly found yourself in a situation where you can’t afford food, the very first thing you should do is take a pantry, fridge and freezer inventory.

If you have never done a full inventory, a printable packet such as THIS one can be a big help to keep you on track. The next thing you’ll need to do is try to figure out how long the situation will be a problem.

If it’s just a situation where you’ve had a shorter paycheck, it will be a far shorter time that you will need to worry about. After you know what you’re already working with and have a rough estimate of how long you think it will last, plan as many meals as possible using ingredients you already have.

Make them cheap. This will give you a head start so you are able to focus solely on finding food.

That’s okay. In fact, it’s more than okay and I encourage everyone to only do what they are comfortable with.

I am positive you’ll find something useful on it. Ever summer my husband and I – or more likely me and my girls these days – head out fishing for a few days.

In fact, I showed in THIS post that one of our 10-day fishing trips can feed my family for so much less than we could eat fresh fish at the store. In fact, I can feed my family for a year for not much more than I would pay for one month’s worth of fish at the grocery store.

If you are in a situation where you can’t afford to buy food, heading out to the lake can be an easy way to find a meal or three. especially if you already own the fishing equipment you need to fish and that you use fishing lures you already own.

And since there are so many wild edibles in all areas of the world, it’s a great way to eat a variety of free food without too much trouble. It’s also perfect for those with a low income since foraging is totally free to do.

For instance, morel mushrooms grow wild in the US and are delicious. Even the common dandelion is fully edible from the root to the flower.

If you’re interested in that particular book, I reviewed it HERE back after it was first published. Hunting is another thing my own family does to provide food.

One deer can feed our family of four for months. Add small game to that and you’ve got several more meals.

Other than the cost of your supplies, it’s essentially free food. Since there are many, many different seasons throughout the year, you should almost always be able to find something to hunt.

Be sure to double check but last I checked there was no bag limit. They are considered a nuisance at this point.

Not only is it illegal but it also messes with the conservation efforts that hunting actually provides.

For years, I have been using free gift cards that I earn online to pay for everything from food to camping gear. It has – at times – been a true life saver for us and if you have found yourself in a situation where you don’t have much money for groceries, it can be for you too.

My all-time favorite site to earn gift cards with is called InstaGC. Basically, it is a survey site that pays you for doing quite a few things.

I have been a member for years and it’s a huge help. Save your points and cash out with as little as $1.00.

You can even use it to earn free Bitcoin.

) are instantly sent. Plus when you sign up you’ll earn 10 points FREE just for signing up.

Here’s how to earn with InstaGC: It is important to note that with InstaGC, your first cash out does take a couple days.

This is normal for the site and once you receive your first one, each payout up to $25.00 will be done instantly. Anything over $25 is always processed manually.

My second favorite site is called Swagbucks and if you search the web, you need to be a Swagbucks member. Swagbucks literally pays you for searching the web.

You can earn for surveys, videos, games, printing coupons and loads more. Prizes are sent as gift cards or PayPal 7-10 days after you request them.

Here’s how to get started with Swagbucks: As a new Swagbucks member, they will give you a $10.00 bonus free when you sign up and meet all the offer conditions.

These days, food poverty has become such a problem that most areas have a network of food banks to help those with little money. Even better is that they have evolved from the old box filled with canned goods and instead, most offer fresh meats, kid-friendly items such as chicken nuggets breads, organic produce and even dairy products.

Convenience foods have created a growing problem in our society. People just don’t know how to cook and even when they do, they no longer want to take the time to do so.

Eating this way long term can cause not only budget issues, but health issues as well for you or a family member. Even if you don’t have the easy, convenient version of what you need, there is a good chance that you have the ingredients to make what you need instead.

And surprisingly, it may not be as hard as you think to make those quick options once you know what available foods you have to work with. Once you have things made, you can then take a look at putting a meal together.

If you absolutely can not find food to feed your family, visiting soup kitchens or a community kitchen is always an option. While Emma and I were homeless in 2010, we were lucky enough to live in a homeless shelter.

The food was not great and to be honest, I still cannot tell you what the mystery meat was. It was a hit to my ego, but my daughter was fed and even though we did not have food security in our lives, she never went to bed without a full belly.

If things are so rough for you that you can’t afford food, I highly recommend you take advantage of any government programs you can. This can include the Supplem.

Lea esta nota en español. For more stories like this one, subscribe to Real Humans on Apple Podcasts or Spotify.

And most of us lived alone. Not too long ago, cheap rent like this was Kansas City’s main attraction.

California had good weather and beaches. New York had the most exciting jobs and tons of cool stuff to do (if you could find the time and money to actually enjoy it).

But what people now pay to share spaces with roommates — it hurts my brain (and not because I don’t understand the kind of market forces that push up rent). What doesn’t quite compute is when, exactly, this happened.

Then suddenly, it wasn’t. But I can’t quite pinpoint the shift.

The other week, I got on Twitter and invited folks to play a game with me: “Tweet me what you paid for your first rental in the metro.”. Let’s try it another way.

I will correct for inflation and tell you what that would be in 2021 as well as what similar rentals in the same neighborhood go for now.

But it’s climbed even more dramatically across various Midtown neighborhoods. A two-bedroom in Westport went for $850 in 2013 (more like $950, correcting for inflation).

A two-bedroom house in East Brookside rented for $350 in the late 1990s (more like $600 today). Renting a similar home now costs closer to $1,500 a month.

Even with inflation, that’s just $620 today. An available unit in the exact same building is currently listed for $950.

And just about every unit I saw cost more than $800. Where could you go, I wondered, for under $800 a month.

I expanded my search, scoured metro listings, and realized that a place in that budget is nearly impossible to find in Kansas City. We’re not just talking about a minimum square footage or specific neighborhood.

“I think a lot of people’s knee-jerk reaction when they hear about increasing rents in the city, it’s like, ‘Oh, it’s downtown, it’s Crossroads, right. Like it’s really expensive to live there,'” says Erin Royals at the University of Missouri-Kansas City Center for Neighborhoods.

And it’s not downtown. It’s not the Crossroads.

Royals has a master’s in urban planning, and she’s in the process of getting her Ph.D. in geography.

“Capital is always going to go where it can make the most profit,” Royals says. “The further east you go, that gap gets bigger and bigger.”.

Rent in Kansas City went up 6% overall from the second quarter of 2020 to the second quarter of 2021. According to Matthew Nevinger, who specializes in the Kansas City market at Cushman and Wakefield, that’s basically unheard of.

If you zoom in on eastern Kansas City, the data is even bleaker. Over the same time period, rent increased by 13.1% in eastern Kansas City.

Bureau of Labor Statistics data.

“And now it’s all the way up to $895.”. Those increases were highest for low- to mid-range units.

Young people often compensate by divvying up rent among roommates. But that strategy doesn’t work for everyone.

At 67 years old, she’s retired from a long career working various security jobs, notably at the Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City. Understandably, she wants her own place.

But she and a number of other residentsjust got notice that they have to move out — and soon. New ownership plans to rehab the property, and once it’s been renovated, Lucas says her apartment’s rent will jump from $650 a month to more than $1,000.

“It would be pushing my limit on stuff, because you know, there are times when you have to — how I want to put it — sometimes with my medications, if it says take two a day, I take it once a day,” Lucas admits. “That’s just to save money.”.

Lucas — who walks with a cane — watches her small granddaughter during the day part of the week. Knowing her neighbors made that duty feel easy and safe.

Which makes me think, again, of my question: How do renters make up the difference, and how does Kansas City change if they can’t.

Vance is an organizer for the housing rights group KC Tenants. She calls herself the “quintessential townie” — working barista jobs in Midtown from the time she moved out on her own at 16.

But when she visited those bigger cities, what she saw were prohibitively expensive apartment buildings that all looked identical to one another. “I would come back here and I’d be like, ‘Well damn, at least it’s not like that in Kansas City.’ And then I started seeing it happen in my own city, in my own neighborhood,” Vance says.

Eventually, her mom got priced out too.

Now, every time Vance sees construction in her new neighborhood, it scares her, because she sees it as a sign that she soon won’t be able to afford the new home she’s made. She doesn’t know how long she, and other renters like her, can stay one step ahead of Kansas City’s “revitalization.”.

“I want to die here,” she says. “I want to grow old in Kansas City.”.

Members of the KC Media Collective include KCUR 89.3, American Public Square, Kansas City PBS/Flatland, Missouri Business Alert, Startland News and The Kansas City Beacon.

College is a time of learning, exploration, and growth—and chances are, you’ll be spending a lot of time on campus. While most students live in dorm rooms, it can be a huge relief to have an off-campus apartment.

There’s a downside, though: Apartments typically cost significantly more than dorm rooms. If you’re wondering how to afford an apartment in college, you’re certainly not alone.

Before we get too far ahead of ourselves, let’s be realistic: Is an off-campus apartment actually affordable.

There’s what seems affordable, what actually is affordable, and what your landlord considers affordable.

Here’s what to dig into—and what to ask yourself.

It’s usually pretty easy to find this information—just Google “[your school] dorm room cost,” and you should find it.

You can look up average estimated prices in this report from the College Board.

If the prices are only listed in terms, figure out the rough monthly cost by dividing the cost by the number of months per term. A semester is usually around 4 months long, while a quarter is usually around 2.5 months long.

Next, research average rent prices in your school’s area. You can use a search aggregator like Apartments.com or check sites like Craigslist.

Utilities can easily add $100–$300—or more—to your monthly rent, depending on the area and which amenities are included in the price. Utilities are generally included in the price of a dorm room.

Now you’ll have the estimated costs for both a dorm room and an apartment, and you can compare the prices directly. An apartment will almost certainly be more expensive—but how much more expensive depends on many factors.

How much can you actually afford to spend on housing.

Begin with your total monthly income, and estimate all your monthly expenses. If you’re struggling to get started, use Mos’s handy college student budget templates.

Once you start adding up all your expenses, you may find that you don’t have as much for housing as you’d thought.

Would you rather have an apartment or more money for activities. Is having your own space worth the trade-off of having a tighter budget in other areas of your life.

It’s wise to give careful thought to these questions. What’s the point of having your own place if you can’t afford beer and tacos.

There’s a big gotcha when it comes to renting an apartment. To qualify, you’ll have to meet certain income-related requirements.

In most cases, landlords require that a tenant or tenants make 2–3.5x the monthly rent. 3x is the most common.

So, if an apartment rents for $1,200 a month, the landlord might require that you earn at least $3,600 per month.

Financial aid money is generally not considered income by landlords, although it might be if you have money left over after paying for school-related expenses.

So, if you earn $2,000 a month and your friend earns $1,600, your combined income will meet the $3,600 rental income requirement.

If not, you can look up the rental agency that manages the property to see their terms or contact the landlord for details.

For instance, a landlord might be more flexible if you have a parent who is willing to co-sign the lease agreement.

How do you actually afford an apartment as a college student. These tips will help.

Okay—Captain Obvious here, we know. But renting with roommates can dramatically reduce your housing costs.

In many cases, the more roommates you live with, the more you’ll save. For instance, renting a 4-bedroom house with 3 other roommates will often be cheaper per person than the 4 of you renting 2 apartments.

Don’t have specific roommates in mind. Plenty of students advertise “Roommate Wanted” ads on Craigslist, Facebook Marketplace, and other platforms.

Roommates help to both bring down housing costs and meet those pesky rental income requirements (see above). They’re a win-win.

For most folks, wanting an apartment in college really just means not wanting to live in a college dorm. So how about a tiny house, an above-garage apartment, or a mother-in-law unit.

Not weird enough for you. Try the hippie commune down the street, or live on a goat farm.

All jokes aside, there are plenty of alternative living situations that can be more affordable than apartments. Even renting a private room in someone else’s house can be more private than living in a dorm.

And don’t be afraid to ask for student discounts.

There’s not often a lot of wiggle room in a student’s monthly budget. But if you’re trying to afford an apartment, it’s time to find some.

This could mean cutting back on optional spending, like entertainment and eating out. Or it could mean looking for “big wins,” like eliminating car payments and other costly expenses.

Or can you take other steps to free up space in your budget.

The specifics are up to you. You might be able to trade some labor for reduced—or even free—rent, depending on the situation.

Many apartment complexes hire live-in managers who help to fix minor problems, collect rents, and keep an eye on things.

Some households might be willing to provide housing in exchange for childcare or other help around the house. WWOOF is a platform that lets you work on an organic farm in exchange for free housing and food.

Workaway is a platform that lets you trade labor in various forms for free housing and (sometimes) food.

If you don’t see advertised opportunities, it never hurts to ask. If you can prove you’re responsible and a hard worker, you can luck into some great situations.

Boosting your income is another way to afford an apartment. That could mean getting a part-time job or working more hours at your current gig—or it might mean looking for a side gig.

Side gigs are generally perfect for students because the required hours are often flexible. Jobs in the gig economy are ideal, as you can usually pick up “shifts” whenever you find yourself with free time.

Driving for Uber or Lyft is a classic example, but there are dozens of other great side gig opportunities. A few ideas include:

Tutoring fellow students. Delivering food with Doordash or UberEats.

Freelance writing or designing. Doing odd jobs for neighbors or fellow students.

You can research side gigs online or stop by your campus resource office to see if they have any ideas.

In some cases, it might be feasible to take out a bit more in loans to afford an apartment of your own. This approach is totally above-board and legal, but it’s not without its downsides.

There’s also the long-term effect of interest, which is important to grasp ahead of time. If you’re renting for $1,200 per month but using loans to pay for it, you’ll end up paying significantly more in the long run.

In most cases, if you need to rely on loans to pay for rent, it’s best to stick to the cheapest possible option (read: a dorm room).

These, too, can be used for living expenses—but they tend to have higher APRs than federal loans. Plus, you’ll usually need a solid income and a good credit score to qualify for them.

If you’re springing for an off-campus apartment, you’ll likely need to streamline the rest of your finances to make ends meet.

Need a hand with the financial aid stuff. Mos gets you an expert’s help with FAFSA, grants, scholarships, and more.

Typical asking rents at the national level now stand at $1,996, which is 6.0% higher than one year ago, according to the Zillow Observed Rent Index (ZORI). It’s also not uncommon for landlords to raise rent prices during lease renewal periods to account for inflation, increased market value, or other external factors.

A common rule of thumb holds that you shouldn’t spend more than 30% of your monthly income on housing or 40x the monthly rent. But, in certain metropolitan areas, you could be forced to spend way more to cover the cost of living in a larger city.

In fact, a recent report by Moody’s Analytics found that a surge in rental demand as a result of rising mortgage rates and home prices have forced many would-be buyers to stay put and continue paying rent. The report showed that last year, the share of American household income needed to rent an average-priced apartment crossed the rent-burdening 30% threshold for the first time since Moody’s began tracking this type of data.

The most recent data highlights just how steep rental prices have become, with averages in certain markets climbing well over $3,500.

“Typically, 30% of gross income is considered to be the boundary of affordability. Of course, spending less will leave more cash at the end of the day, so if spending on other bigger ticket things, like travel, is important, then 20% of gross income should be considered,” says John Walkup, Co-Founder of UrbanDigs, a real estate and data analytics firm.

Depending on the neighborhood you’re hoping to live in, you may not be able to find a home that meets your needs and falls below that 30% threshold. In these cases, you’ll have to determine if you value your home and location more than you do some of your regular expenses.

Start by breaking down your budget into two: your income vs. your expenses.

Next up—review your regular expenses and decide if there are areas in your budget that could be reduced or eliminated altogether. Think: forgotten subscriptions, unused gym memberships, or excessive spending on travel, shopping, and dining out.

If you’re unable to cut costs within your budget, it may be time to reconsider your non-negotiables as you embark on your rental search or approach your lease renewal period. A few ways to save might include:.

However, with costs on the rise, knowing how much you should be spending on rent can be tricky. Think carefully about what you consider a negotiable vs.