The average American needs to earn $22.10 an hour in order to afford a place to live. Minimum wage earners would have to work three full time jobs in some states just to afford housing.
These are some of the audacious claims made in the 2018 “Out of Reach” report from the National Low Income Housing Coalition (NLIHC), which proports to show that millions of Americans can’t afford a place to lay their head, a problem that will only be fixed with a massive infusion of federal cash.
“In the richest country in history, no family should have to make the awful choice between putting food on the table and keeping a roof over their heads,” writes Sen. Bernie Sanders (I –Vt.) in the report’s preface. “This is America. We have the resources to solve the affordable housing crisis. We have the solutions that work. What we need is the will to do what is right.”
The media were quick to jump on these findings.
“Bleak New Figures Show Just How Unaffordable Rent Is In Every U.S. State,” reads the headline over at HuffPo. “Where is all the affordable housing? Nowhere,” declares The Outline. “A minimum-wage worker can’t afford a 2-bedroom apartment anywhere in the U.S.,” says The Washington Post.
Read the rest at reason.com.