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Sacramento residents are facing more problems facing low-income housing.
A new report from the National Low Income Housing Coalition shows that very low-income renters in the Sacramento Metro area face a shortage of more than $78,000 affordable and available homes, published yesterday. It showed that thousands of low-income residents spend well over the recommended 30% of their income on rent and utilities because of the lack of affordable homes and apartments. Just over 40 affordable and available rentals exist in the Sacramento region for every 100 very low-income renter households.
In Sacramento County, the federal government defines very low income as a person who earns $31,750 — roughly minimum wage — or a household of four earning $45,300. For Sacramento residents living in extreme poverty, the shortage of available and affordable homes is much more severe. Only about one in five extremely low-income renter households would be able to find an affordable and available unit in the Sacramento area, the report found. “The shortage can only be addressed through sufficiently long-term federal investments in affordable housing programs designed to serve households with the greatest needs,” the report stated.
As of last month according to the report, 5.6 million renter households were behind on rent, accounting for 14% of renter households.