Out of Reach

Two-bedroom Housing Wages vary widely across all 50 states, the District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico. They range from $11.57 in Puerto Rico to $52.79 in California.

One-bedroom Housing Wages vary widely across HUD Fair Market Rent (FMR) areas. Communities in coastal and metropolitan areas tend to have the highest one-bedroom Housing Wages.

The hourly wages of workers by percentile compared to the Housing Wages needed to afford a one- and two-bedroom apartment. More than 60% of all workers earn an hourly wage that is less than the two-bedroom Housing Wage, and more than half of all workers earn an hourly wage that is less than the one-bedroom Housing Wage.

The median hourly wages of the country’s most common occupations compared with the national one- and two-bedroom Housing Wages. Seventeen of the 25 most common occupations pay median wages that are lower than the one- and two-bedroom Housing Wages.

Low-income families in a variety of circumstances struggle to afford housing at the one- and two-bedroom Fair Market Rent (FMR).

The wages earned by percentile for Black, Latino, and white workers compared to the one- and two-bedroom Housing Wages. The median wage of a full-time white worker is enough to afford a one-bedroom apartment at Fair Market Rent (FMR), but the same is not true for Black or Latino workers. At the 60th percentile, white workers can nearly afford a two-bedroom rental home at FMR, while Black and Latino workers at the same percentile cannot afford a one-bedroom rental home at FMR.

The median wages by race, ethnicity, and gender are compared to the one- and two-bedroom Housing Wages. While white men earning their corresponding median wage can afford a one-bedroom apartment at Fair Market Rent (FMR), Black and Latina women fall short by $7.25 and $8.48 per hour, respectively.

When comparing the Department of Defense (DoD) and HUD budget authority (i.e., funding levels authorized by Congress) and outlays as a share of gross domestic product (GDP) from 1980 to 2025, findings show that the annual DoD budget authority and outlays far exceed those for HUD.