Friday, October 19, 2012
Effin' Lists ATL among major metros struggling with "overall affordability"
Posted by Clay Duda @clayduda on Fri, Oct 19, 2012 at 10:38 AM
Compared with the 25 largest metro areas in the country, Atlanta has experienced some of the “greatest pressures in overall affordability” since the start of the new millennium, according to a new report from the Center for Housing Policy (PDF).
Our fair city ranked among the top three, along with Dallas and Detroit, in widening the gap of affordability when it comes to fundamental costs such as housing and transportation.
According to the report, moderate-income households face some of the biggest challenges, shelling out an average of 63 percent of their income to live and move around in Atlanta — about eight percent higher than the national average.
Based on the percentage of income spent, the Washington D.C. area carries the lowest burden for moderate-income households — with 51 percent of income going towards these fundamental needs — despite ranking among the most expensive places to live. The report calculates “moderate-income” as households with income levels between 50 and 100 percent of each metro’s median income, meaning cost burdens don’t necessarily reflect the dollar amount spent in each area.
On the other end of the spectrum, Miami topped the chart with an average of 72 percent of household incoming going toward the same services.
Since 2000, housing and transportation costs across the nation have ballooned an average of 44 percent, with increases in household income trailing at 25 percent. Atlanta has seen similar trends with average increases 37 percent and 14 percent, respectively.
Income failed to keep pace with rising housing and transportation costs across all of the metro areas looked at in the study, highlighting the fact that middle-class Americans have less expendable income today than they did a decade ago as our country continues to struggle with an economic recession.
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