Ownership is out of the reach of millions of American working families, to be sure. But so is rental housing, according to the latest study by the National Low Income Housing Coalition.

The group's analysis shows that nowhere in the country can full-time workers earning the minimum wage afford a one-bedroom apartment in their own communities. The current hourly minimum wage is $5.15

Indeed, in 70 major metropolitan areas, minimum wage workers must put in more than 100 hours a week just to afford the fair market rent in their areas.

To pay the median fair market rent on the typical two-bedroom apartment, you'd have to earn $11.08 hourly, or 215 percent times the current minimum. And of course, the situation is much more shocking in high-cost areas like the East and West Coasts.

You have to make $22.44 an hour in San Francisco to afford the rent on an average two-bedroom unit. But if you were paid only the minimum, you'd have to work 174 hours. In Westchester County, N.Y., those numbers are $20.63 and 160 hours, respectively. And remember, there would be nothing left over for other basic necessities like food and clothing.

Because of the growing economy, moreover, the problem is getting worse, not better, says Sheila Crowley, president of the NLIHC, a 26-year-old organization dedicated to ending the affordable housing crisis through education and advocacy. "With rents rising faster than wages, life is becoming harder on the working poor, not easier."

The group supports a higher minimum wage. "An increase is long over-due," says Crowley. "The wage rate of ordinary workers should at least assure that they can afford to house themselves and their families."

But it also believes the more "income supplements" for working stiffs are necessary, too. And it has the ear of the Clinton White House, which not only wants to boost the minimum wage and increase rental assistance but also to actually build affordable rental properties once again.

Uncle Sam hasn't been in the housing production business in years.

Sec. Andrew Cuomo of the Department of Housing and Urban Development said the report's "staggering statistics...clearly point out" the nature of the nation's housing dilemma.

"It's almost counter-intuitive, because in many ways, things are so good, people don't understand why we have this housing crisis," Sec. Cuomo said. "But it's actually because things are so good...The economy is so strong that it's driving up values across the board. Home values are going up; rents are going up."

HUD says some 5.4 million families need affordable housing, the highest number in history, because their incomes haven't kept pace with what property owners and landlords charge for rent.

Published: October 18, 2000

Use of this article without permission is a violation of federal copyright laws.

When Lew Sichelman first started writing about housing in 1969, he was the youngest real estate writer in the country. Now, 37 years later, he's one of the oldest -- and most decorated. He has been rated the top housing columnist in the country by the National Association of Realtors as well as by his peers in the National Association of Real Estate Editors. Indeed, NAREE has recognized his work on numerous occasions. One year - due to his advancing age, he can't recall which one - he earned top honors in the annual NAREE Journalism Contest in three out of the four major writing categories. It was the first time one writer has won so many NAREE awards in a single year. Known for his ability to make even the most difficult topics understandable, Sichelman also has been honored by the National Association of Home Builders and the Mortgage Bankers Association. He began providing in-depth coverage of and consumer-oriented information about housing and housing finance at the Washington Daily News, where he was real estate editor. He held that same position for nine more years at the Washington Star, which purchased the News in 1972. The Star, a so-called "writer's newspaper" which also had the misfortune of being an evening paper, was put out of its misery in 1981, and Sichelman, who had begun self-syndicating his column in 1978, decided to become a full-time columnist. Today, his column, "The Housing Scene," is distributed by United Media to newspapers throughout the country. He also is on the staff of National Mortgage News, an independent newspaper which is considered the bible of the mortgage business. And he writes for numerous other publications, including MarketWatch.com, where he answers readers questions once a week, Sports Illustrated (don't ask), RealtyTimes.com, BigBuilder and others. Sichelman is married, the father of five and grandfather of eleven.