Sun Sentinel | Oct. 2, 2015
By: Paul Owers
Among Florida’s rental markets, South Florida imposes the heaviest financial burden, a new report shows.
In Palm Beach, Broward and Miami-Dade counties, 36 percent of renters spend at least half of their before-tax income on rent and utilities, according to an analysis by Enterprise Community Partners, a nonprofit housing organization based in Columbia, Md. Orlando and Daytona Beach are next at 30 percent.
Statewide, 31 percent of renters devote at least half of their income to housing. That’s the highest percentage in the country.
South Florida’s rent burden is driven by a low-wage economy and new housing stock that caters mostly to affluent buyers, Enterprise officials say. Because of the high cost of land, developers say they have to build luxury homes and condos to turn a profit.
“The middle of the market is really getting squeezed,” said Andrew Jakabovics, senior director of policy development and research for Enterprise.
The group, which promotes affordable housing through its Make Room campaign, said the study is based on 2013 U.S. Census data, the most recent available.
Enterprise did not release a ranking of metro areas nationwide but cited a recent study from Harvard University that showed South Florida had the biggest rent burden in the country. New Orleans was second and New Haven, Conn., third.
Industry experts say consumers should spend no more than 30 percent of their incomes on housing.
South Florida rents have increased in recent years amid strong demand for apartments from former homeowners and young professionals who want to remain mobile. Analysts say those higher rates will continue until more rentals open across the region next year.
Broward County‘s average apartment rent as of August was $1,527, a 7 percent increase from a year earlier, according to Reinhold P. Wolff Economic Research in Oakland Park.
Palm Beach County‘s average rent rose 9 percent year over year to $1,495. Miami-Dade’s average also rose 9 percent, to $1,615.
“These high levels of rents can’t be sustained for a long period of time without having a major impact on the market,” said L. Keith White, president of Reinhold.
In Florida’s 10 largest metro areas, more than a quarter of the 768,640 renters spending at least half of their incomes on rent and utilities are younger than 35, according to Enterprise.
Jaimie Ross, president of the nonprofit Florida Housing Coalition, said in a statement that lawmakers need to devote the entire $324 million in state and local housing trust funds to affordable housing programs.
“With the recovery of the real estate market, we cannot afford to have one penny of the state and local housing trust funds used for purposes other than affordable housing,” she said.
Affordable housing developers get subsidies from the federal government. That allows them to build units for residents who meet certain income qualifications.
Keith Poliakoff, a South Florida lawyer who represents affordable housing developers, is working with Pinnacle Housing Group on a proposed 100-unit development for seniors called Pinnacle at Peacefield on Adams Street in Hollywood.
He said opposition often comes from those who believe affordable housing communities drag down property values. But Poliakoff insists that’s not necessarily the case, and more cities recognize the importance of having these developments.
“People are starting to realize that affordable housing is as nice as market-rate housing,” Poliakoff said. “It’s the same countertops, the same flooring.”
Powers@sunsentinel.com, 561-243-6529 or Twitter @paulowers
Article accessed last on October 3, 2015 here.