The National Housing Conference’s Center for Housing Policy (CHP) released the 2013 edition of Paycheck to Paycheck, examining data on housing affordability, with a focus on workers in the tourism sector. The report uses data from the first quarter of 2013 across 207 metropolitan areas, and focuses on five occupations chosen by CHP to represent jobs in the tourism sector: housekeepers, wait staff, auto mechanics, hotel front desk managers, and flight attendants. According to the study, housing affordability challenges are particularly severe for tourism industry workers living in vacation destinations. Workers in two occupations (housekeepers and wait staff) cannot afford the rent on an apartment in any of metro areas examined by the study. Only workers in one occupation, flight attendants, can typically afford two-bedroom Fair Market Rents (FMRs) in all of the metro areas studied. However, flight attendants cannot afford to buy a typical home in 25 of the most expensive metro areas. In many metro areas, housekeepers and wait staff face a severe housing cost burden, paying at least 50% of their income towards rent. Researchers found that housekeepers across 78 metro areas pay at least half their income towards rent on a two-bedroom apartment. Similarly, wait staff across 68 metro areas must pay at least half of their income towards rent. The report also assessed the changes in housing affordability for workers in the travel industry between the first quarter of 2012 and the first quarter of 2013, using data on median home prices. Twelve metro areas became more affordable for auto mechanics since 2012, and 11 metro areas became more affordable for front desk workers. The metro areas with increasing affordability were located in areas with lower housing costs, including Allentown (PA), Albany (NY), and metro areas in Ohio and Michigan. Yet, housing affordability decreased across the vast majority of metro areas, including Phoenix (AZ), Houston (TX), and Reno (NV). The report, Paycheck to Paycheck 2013: A Snapshot of Metropolitan Housing Affordability for Travel and Tourism Workers is available at: http://bit.ly/142aNge