How Many Minimum Wage Incomes Does It Take To Afford Rent in Dallas?

The economy is considered to be the top issue for voters who cast their ballots last week, and housing is at or near the top of the list of  economic concerns. Across the country, increasingly in recent years, the dream of owning a home has become one that simply costs too much for many as well.

But what about affording rent?

A recent report from Clever Real Estate highlights just how difficult it is for someone earning minimum wage to afford rent in the largest 15 cities in the United States.

“From coast to coast, the minimum wage is falling short of how much Americans need to comfortably afford average rent prices in major cities,” a CNBC article on the study explains. “A common rule of thumb recommends spending no more than 30% of your income on housing. However, as housing costs have continued to rise, it’s become difficult for many Americans to stick to that budget.”

The federal minimum wage has been $7.25 per hour for the last 15 years. The numbers for renting in Dallas, the ninth-largest city in the U.S., are daunting.

The Clever Real Estate report says that in Dallas, the fair market rent is $1,606 per month, which means the necessary hourly minimum wage needs to be $30.88 per hour, not $7.25, in order to comfortably afford a one-bedroom dwelling at fair market price.

According to the study, Dallas, as well as just about every other major American city, does not “offer truly affordable rentals to a single minimum-wage worker — even those willing to downsize to a studio.” Only three cities offer one-bedroom rentals that require less than half of the area’s minimum wage income (Buffalo, New York., St. Louis and Hartford, Connecticut).

In Dallas, 4.26 full-time minimum wage incomes are needed to meet the 30% affordability standard for a one-bedroom apartment; 4.38 are needed in Austin and 3.39 in Houston.


Dallas sits high on a list of cities where rent on a typical one-bedroom unit costs more than an entire monthly income, according to the report. Average rents in Dallas, Austin and Houston require at least 102% of a minimum wage earner's monthly pay. For families, the picture is even darker.

The average monthly rate for a four-bedroom apartment in Dallas, according to Apartments.com. is $4,357, and four-bedroom rental houses average $3,845 per month. For a four-bedroom rental in Dallas, 8.02 full-time minimum age wage incomes are needed to afford monthly rent payments. Of course, that’s just for housing. Reports on estimates for the average monthly cost for groceries for a family of four range from $750 to $1,000.

The alarming nature of the report is summed up in a short, but impactful sentence: “For true affordability,” the report states,“workers need both a high local minimum wage and low-cost housing, a relatively rare combination.”