The National Low Income Housing Coalition reports that in 70% of the metropolitan areas in the country, the Housing Wage is at least twice the prevailing minimum wage. In 56 metropolitan areas the Housing Wage is over three times the minimum wage”. The coalition's "housing wage" assumes that a family spends no more than 30 percent of its gross income on rent and utilities; anything more generally is considered unaffordable by the government. About 36 million homes in the United States are rented. Roughly 80 percent of renter homes are located in nearly 1,000 counties in which a family must work over 80 hours a week - or more than two full-time jobs - at minimum wage to afford the typical two-bedroom apartment, the coalition said. The report quoted federal Bureau of Labor Statistics data that showed hourly wages rising about 2.6 percent over the past year, slower than the 2.9 percent rise in rents recorded in the Consumer Price Index. In addition, the report said, government spending on Section 8 rental vouchers, which helps 2 million Americans - mainly poor - pay rent hasn’t kept up with demand. [more]