The Washington area is the sixth most expensive rental market in the country, according to a new study.
San Francisco was the most expensive metro area in which to rent, at $1,760, and Wheeling, W.Va., was the least expensive, at $588, according to a report by the Center for Housing Policy.
In the Washington region, the fair market rent reached about $1,500 in 2009.
Fair market rents, set by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, are derived using base rents from the 2000 census, and updated with data from the American Community Survey and the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
Most expensive rental markets
Metro area Two-bedroom fair market rent
1. San Francisco $1,760
2. Honolulu $1,704
3. Santa Cruz, Calif. $1,656
4. Santa Ana, Calif. $1,594
5. Suffolk-Nassau, N.Y. $1,592
6. Washington $1,494
Source: Center for Housing Policy
“It is quite tough, at least on the rent side,” said Maya Brennan, senior research associate for CHP. Brennan said rent becomes more affordable for two-income households, but, given the fallout from the down economy, “it’s tough to count on being a two-income household.”
The CHP is the research affiliate for the National Housing Conference, a nonprofit that researches affordable housing policies in the country.
The study, called “Paycheck to Paycheck: Wages and the Cost of Housing in America,” also chronicled the change in income needed to buy a house from 2008 to 2009. The income needed to buy a house in the Washington area fell 5 percent, from $89,674 in 2008 to $85,074 in 2009, according to the report.
The decline, however, is little comfort to many potential buyers and workers with low to moderate income, Brennan said.
“Although it is true that homeownership has gotten less expensive, it is still not affordable for some workers,” she added.
“Although it is true that homeownership has gotten less expensive, it is still not affordable for some workers,” she added.
Despite low mortgage rates, currently hovering at or below 5 percent, tighter credit markets now make it more difficult for people who can afford to buy a home to qualify for one, the report said.
Income needed to buy a house is based mostly on median home price and the prevailing mortgagerate. In the Washington area, the median home price was $285,000 in the fourth quarter of 2009 and $276,000 in the fourth quarter of 2008.
Most expensive rental markets
Metro area Two-bedroom fair market rent
1. San Francisco $1,760
2. Honolulu $1,704
3. Santa Cruz, Calif. $1,656
4. Santa Ana, Calif. $1,594
5. Suffolk-Nassau, N.Y. $1,592
6. Washington $1,494
Source: Center for Housing Policy
