BAKERSFIELD, Calif. (KERO) — The new year brings renewed concerns about housing affordability across the nation and in Kern County.
23ABC looked into the issue and found information from the California Housing Partnership.
A report published in March 2022 reveals while the state had doubled construction of affordable homes over the past three years, California still fell short. A key finding in the report states, “…the State is only funding 16% of what it needs to meet its goals.”
Data showed renters would need to earn 2.8 times the minimum wage to afford the average rent in California, which increased 11% since 2021.
Additionally, of the 6 million renter households, half are lower income with more than one million being extremely low-income, or ELI.
Staying with the California Housing Partnership, 23ABC looked into housing affordability across the state and how it compared to data in Kern County.
In 2019, 78% of ELI households in California spent more than half of their income on housing costs, while 6% of moderate-income households spent more than 50% of their paychecks to cover housing costs.
In Kern, 75% of ELI households spent more than half of their income on those costs, compared to just 1% of moderate-income households who paid more than 50% of their earnings for housing.
Statewide, over 1.2 million low-income families who rented did not have access to an affordable home in 2019. In Kern County, just over 25,500 low-income households lacked that access.