Housing has become less affordable, despite skyrocketing foreclosures and plummeting home prices, according to a new report.
The share of working low- to moderate-income households paying as much as half their income for their mortgage or rent increased between 2005 and 2008 in all regions in the country except the Midwest.
The report was released by the research arm of the National Housing Conference, which advocates for affordable housing.
The share of low- to moderate-incomehouseholds in the Washington statistical area increased from 18 to 22 percent, Maryland’s jumped from 18 to 22 percent, and Virginia’s moved from 16 to 18 percent, the study said.
“More than 20 percent of low- to moderate-income working households spend at least half their income on housing — and double-digit unemployment rates in many states are threatening to push more of America’s families into financial instability,” said Jeffrey Lubell, executive director of the Center for Housing Policy.
Affordability has worsened because of soaring utility costs, increasing mortgage payments, and an unemployment rate that was risingduring part of the study’s time period, the study said.
The study defined a low- to moderate-income working household as one in which members combined to work an average of at least 20 hours per week, and where the total income was at or below 120 percent of their area median income — $102,700 for the Washington area in 2009-2010.
Plummeting home prices, a flood of foreclosures, and federal tax credits have created an environment of ample opportunity to buy homes. The study was meant to explain how people who aren’t moving are affected, said Keith Wardrip, the author of the study.
A first-time homebuyer can find a plethora of incentives, but the situation for a homeowner who is not planning on moving is different, he said. Most people haven’t moved in the last three years, and affordability worsened for those who stayed put, he said.
