Projo 7 to 7 News Blog

As the national foreclosure crisis continues to grab headlines, leaders of the National Low Income Housing Coalition on Tuesday drew attention to a persistent problem in the housing market: the lack of affordable rental housing for those unable to buy a house.

"The news is worse," Sheila Crowley, president of the coalition, said in an afternoon conference call.

The group's benchmark measure, the housing wage, rose from $17.32 last year to $17.84 this year, Crowley said. The housing wage is the amount a full-time, year-round worker would have to earn an hour to afford market rents.

That's the national wage. In Rhode Island, it is even higher, $18.76, according to the coalition's report, titled "Out of Reach 2009." That compares to an estimated average wage for renters of $12.01.

The study found that the fair-market rent for a two-bedroom apartment in Rhode Island is $976 a month. That compares to a median household income of $1,833 a month and an average renter's income of $624 a month.

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