There are some places that we don’t want to be listed as top 5; Most Expensive Areas is one of them. Windham County is listed as number 4 in the State with the housing wage (hourly pay it would take to afford rent using no more than 30% of your income) at $20.94. The Fair Market just doesn’t meet the wages for so many – the average renter earns $15.21. And for folks with Supplemental Security Income? That gap is significantly larger. Windsor County is not far behind with the housing wage listed at $20.08 but the average renter earning $14.46. These numbers and gaps are huge contributors to our housing crisis and effect our economic vitality significantly while the impact is felt disproportionately by those who have been historically excluded- the BIPOC community, women, and (although this data wasn’t pulled with this lens) LGBTQIA+ community. With soaring prices, families are pushed to pay higher and higher portions of their income to housing costs- this limits a households’ ability to meet basic needs of fresh foods, childcare, and transportation let alone setting aside funds for a down payment.
This is our drive. We know a stable, decent, and affordable home is the first stepping stone to opportunity. Whether that means building new homes to meet the overwhelming demands in our communities, maintaining those homes, or bringing folks into homeownership through our shared equity program- we’re there and we’re ready.
These numbers were provided by the annual and newly released Out of Reach Report through the National Low Income Housing Coalition. The sources for these calculations are listed within the report and there’s so much amazing data on Vermont, each county, and the entire country. Dig in, but, maybe grab some chocolate- it’s heavy. https://nlihc.org/oor
