Incomes continue to lag soaring housing costs and service and community workers from janitors to police officers most often feel the squeeze.

"Paycheck To Paycheck: Wages and the Cost of Housing in the Counties, 2004" studied 136 of the nation's largest housing markets and found that in only 25 markets did both janitors and clerks make enough money to comfortably afford the rent if their families were relying on only one income.

Also, none of the elementary school teachers, police officers, licensed practical nurses, retail salespersons and janitors living in nine of the studied metropolitan areas could afford to purchase a median priced home, based on median income, according to the study of 136 metro areas, 64 occupations and 30 counties.

Conducted by the Center for Housing Policy, the research affiliate of the National Housing Conference (NHC) and the National Association of Counties, with funding from Freddie Mac, the study found that housing affordability issues aren't limited to traditionally expensive housing markets, but spreading nationwide.

"Although affordability issues continue to be prevalent in areas that we have come to expect, such as the Northeast and West, these latest findings demonstrate the growing home ownership disparities in the South for our nation's vital community workers," said NHC Chairman G. Allan Kingston.

"Additionally, in all but a handful of the metropolitan areas studied, the current rental market is forcing retail salespersons and janitors to pay in excess of what is considered affordable in order to rent a one- or two-bedroom apartment based on median income," he added.

Generally, housing is considered affordable if a family pays no more than 30 percent of its income. In 2003, the median salary in those two occupations was over $18,000 a year, up 3 percent for janitors and 6 percent for sales clerks, the report said.

The median monthly rent for a two-bedroom apartment in 2003 was $791, up 10 percent from $721. At $9,492 a year, that's more than half their incomes.

The survey also found:

• The growing concern about the lack of affordable housing for low- and moderate-income working families was expressed in urban, suburban and rural counties; large and small counties; and states and regions throughout the nation.

• About 85 percent of the county officials surveyed noted that most new housing in their counties is geared toward middle- and upper-income households, not working families.

• The most pervasive barriers to creating affordable housing, reported by three-quarters of the counties, were Not-In-My-Backyard attitudes (NIMBY-ism) and lack of public funding.

• Affordable housing was rated as a "very big" or "fairly big" problem by more than 69 percent of the communities surveyed.

• The lack of affordable housing contributes to long commutes and increased traffic; to making it difficult for employers to attract and retain workers; to residents leaving the area and to crowding.

• Zoning restrictions and a shortage of land supply also contribute to the shortfall in affordable housing.

Published: July 21, 2004

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Broderick Perkins parlayed a career in old-school journalism into a contemporary digital news service that really hits home. The award-winning consumer journalist, originally from Wilmington, DE, is founder, publisher and executive editor of the bootstrap DeadlineNews Group, a Silicon Valley-based editorial content and consulting service specializing in residential real estate, consumer news and related editorial consulting services. The DeadlineNews Group includes the Web site, DeadlineNews.Com, offering real estate editorial content and consulting services, and its back shop, the Deadline Newsroom, an open house on news that really hits home. Perkins obtained his formal journalism education from University of Delaware and a journalism boot camp, the Institute of Journalism Education at the University of California-Berkeley. He went on to 20 years of service as a daily newspaper journalist at the Wilmington, DE News Journal and San Jose, CA Mercury News. Perkins covered housing on the San Jose Mercury News reporting team which earned a General News Reporting Pulitzer Prize in 1989 for coverage of the Loma Prieta earthquake. He has also produced real estate, consumer and small business content for the Wall Street Journal, Los Angeles Times, RealtyTimes.com, Nolo.com, Better Homes and Gardens, the National Association of Realtors, Homestore/Move and Intuit/Quicken among more than three dozen publications. In addition to managing the DeadlineNews Group, Perkins most recently served as chief editorial consultant for "Nolo's Essential Guide To Buying Your First Home" (Nolo $24.99) and writes real estate television scripts for RealtyTimes.com.