MINNEAPOLIS (FOX 9) – A new report reveals the disparity between minimum wage and the cost of an average two-bedroom rental in different U.S. cities.
According to Out of Reach,in no state, metropolitan area, or county can a full-time minimum-wage worker afford a modest two-bedroom rental home, and these workers cannot afford modest one-bedroom apartments in 91% of U.S. counties.
According to the report, the average Minnesotan needs to earn an hourly wage of $22.41 and work full-time to afford a two-bedroom apartment. In Minnesota, the Fair Market Rent for a two-bedroom apartment is $1,165. And in order to afford this level of rent and utilities, without paying more than 30% of income on housing, a household must earn $3,885 monthly or $46,616 annually.
In most of the Twin Cities metro, workers would need an hourly wage of $25.56, the data show. In the Rochester area, workers would need to make below the state average, at $21.04.