What constitutes affordable housing in Raleigh? Below we will use a little bit of math & define a few words and see if we can determine what is affordable housing in Raleigh, and what is it’s price point. Below we will use H&A to reference ‘houses & apartments’.
AFFORDABLE HOUSING:
In general, affordable housing is “housing for which the occupant(s) is/are paying no more than 30 percent of his or her income for gross housing costs, including utilities. Please note that some jurisdictions may define affordable housing based on other, locally determined criteria, and that this definition is intended solely as an approximate guideline or general rule of thumb.” (source)
The city of Raleigh uses this same 30% formula. (source)
Affordable housing is not the same thing as income restricted housing where it is possible to qualify for government subsidized housing. (source)
RALEIGH MEDIAN HOUSEHOLD INCOME:
$61,505 as per Census Bureau (source)
$78,800 as per HUD (source)
THE FORMULA:
Median Household Income * 30% / 12 months = Monthly Affordable Housing Price Point
Census Figures
$61,505 * .3 / 12= $1,537
HUD Figures
$78,800 * .3 / 12 = $1,970
AVAILABILITY:
Let’s say we split the difference call the price point for affordable housing at $1,700 per month and analyze the data. The following numbers are representative of in Raleigh (source):
Current number of H&A available for rent: 4,748
Current H&A under $1,700/month: ~3,985,
Current H&A over $1,700/month: ~763
Current percent of H&A that fall into the category of affordable housing: 83.9%
Current Vacancy Rate: 5.03% (source)
CONCLUSION:
Despite Raleigh’s current focus on affordable housing, based on the definitions and statistics above it would seem that Raleigh has a fair amount of affordable housing currently on the market.
But this conclusion also leaves questions about the future of our housing situation in Raleigh.
Q.Do our current conversations regarding affordable housing intend to address income restricted housing and is this the type of housing Raleigh needs?
Q: Will affordable housing continue to be available if Raleigh continues to be one of the fastest growing cities in the country with a growth rate of about 3.4% each year?