Monday, June 15, 2015

How Much Income Do You Need to Rent in Austin?


Austin's rental rates can cause a bit of sticker shock, especially to longtime residents or those moving from other cities in Texas.  But how much do you actually need to earn to afford a median-priced #apartment in Austin?  CultureMap reports on Zillow's analysis.

Zillow uses $15 an hour as a minimum wage, based on the fact that Seattle has set a minimum wage of $15 per hour for the city.  However, Texas' minimum wage is only $7.25, so their analysis is based on someone making over twice minimum wage here.

Rent for a median-priced apartment in Austin is $1,686 per month.  This means that in a household with two wage earners, both people need to make at least $16.86 per hour to afford it.  For a single earner, you need to make $33.72 per hour.  For a household to not exceed spending 30 percent of their income on rent, the annual household income needs to be at least $67,440.

Other Texas cities are a bit more affordable.  Two earners need to make $15.13 an hour to afford rent in Houston and $14.65 in Dallas.  

The most affordable places to rent for dual-income households are Detroit ($11.21), Pittsburgh ($11.24), St. Louis ($11.37), Cleveland ($11.61), and Indianapolis ($11.99).  The highest rent was in San Jose, California, where two people have to each make $32.87 an hour to pay for the median rent, which is $3,287 a month.

Don't be discouraged by the news from Zillow, Austin Apartment Specialists knows up-to-the-minute rental rates and specials at all the hottest #Austin apartments, plus how much your income needs to be to qualify.  Give us a call at 512-241-1111 for help!

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