Housing in Maine is among the most expensive in the country, according to a new report shared by personal finance website WalletHub.
Mainers were found to pay the third largest share of their income in rent each month — a whopping 52.72 percent of income — surpassed only by New York and Hawaii.
Homeowners in Maine fared comparatively better, although the state still ranked in the bottom half, coming in 15th-worst, with an average monthly housing cost of 26.60 percent of income.
To calculate these rankings, mortgage and rent payments were taken into consideration alongside home energy costs.
Click Here to Read the Full Report
A study published this past summer by the National Low Income Housing Coalition found that Mainers need to make over $45,000 annually on average to afford a one-bedroom apartment in the state, and they need nearly $60,000 if they want to live in a two-bedroom apartment.
This translates to a so-called housing wage of $22.41 per hour for a one-bedroom apartment and $28.42 for a two-bedroom apartment. In other words, someone would need to work two full-time minimum wage jobs in order to afford a two-bedroom apartment and one-and-a-half full-time minimum wage jobs to pay for a one-bedroom.
Affordability varies widely, however, from location to location throughout the state, with housing wages spiking to a high of $38 per hour near Portland and York, which equates to roughly $80,000 per year.
Based on Maineโs minimum wage at the time of the report, $14.65 per hour, full-time employees could only afford to pay $762 in rent each month, a price far below the market rate for rental housing in most of the state.
[RELATED: Average Mainer Needs to Earn $60k Annually to Afford a 2-Bedroom Apartment, Study Shows]
Maineโs rating for housing affordability came in around the middle of the pack, ranking 26th nationwide.
Of the nearly 153,000 Maine households renting their living accommodations, 24 percent make below 30 percent of their area median income, while 39 percent make less than 50 percent of this threshold.
The average hourly wage of renters in Maine was found to be $17.53 per hour. For someone working full time at this rate of pay, an affordable rent would be just $912 per month, well below the average price of rental housing.
To be considered affordable under the terms of this study, rent must be equal to or less than 30 percent of oneโs income.
Click Here to Read the Full Results of the Study
Researchers at a state-based think tank published a report last year illustrating how Maineโs housing crisis has been exacerbated by some of the policies being pursued at the state and local level, while also highlighting some policies that offer potential solutions to remedy it.
In their report โ titled Under Construction: Fixing Maineโs Self-Imposed Housing Crisis โ James Siodla, Ph.D. of Colby College and Harris Van Pate, J.D of the Maine Policy Institute took a look at the impact of various housing policies that have been implemented throughout the state.
โMaineโs housing crisis is significantly influenced by restrictive land use policies at the local level,โ the report states. โBy adopting pro-market reforms, Maine municipalities can increase housing availability, improve affordability, and foster economic growth.โ
โState-level policies that reduce regulatory burdens and incentivize development can further support these efforts,โ argues the report. โIt is crucial to recognize that market forces play a vital role in housing supply and that government intervention should aim to support rather than hinder these forces.โ
According to the report, evidence shows โa strong correlation between housing costs and regulations,โ as there is a โclear declineโ in housing availability when strict local zoning or minimum lot size ordinances are in place.
The study goes on to suggest that direct housing policy leadership ought to be primarily concentrated within local governments, as these elected officials are more likely to be responsive to local needs.
It also recommends that municipalities take the lead on housing policy because it would allow for โmore diversity and experimentationโ to find what is most effective.
This is not to say, however, that the researchers believe the state government has no role to play in addressing Maineโs housing crisis.
Instead of advancing particular housing policies, the report argues that the state government should focus its energy on โreducing the regulatory burden on developers and streamlining the permitting process.โ
Disclaimer: The Maine Wire is a project of the Maine Policy Institute.
Don’t worry, the same democrats that have caused the problem will come up with a tax to fix it.
Not if you are a non citizen it isn’t
And Mainers continue to push the myth โ the way life should be โ
A supply versus a demand issue? Highly likely. I followed events in Ireland and they are having the same issue (high cost of housing) and that is due in large part due to lack of supply due to the huge number of immigrants they let in. The kick is that the Irish govt is building IPass centers and housing complexes for immigrants with no charge to the immigrants while the citizens are on long wait list (in years) for housing.
THIS is why i bought a house in Florida and am transitioning there. My company is moving too.
Every time I drive anywhere, I drive by (former) homes which are standing empty, have been empty for years, & which are being allowed to fall down. Evidently, ppl can’t afford to heat, repair, and/or PAY THE TAXES on them. Maybe the system of TAXATION needs to change. Instead of taxing homeowners for the privilege of having a roof over their head, the state should TAX THE RICH.
RWL
That’s because the state government along with local has placed so many rules, regulations and laws, for what you will do, and can’t do when building that it becomes cost prohibitive. In order to make a profit the landlord has to charge more. More than most people can afford because the state gov. is already sucking them dry. Then if you somehow manage to overcome these obstacles, some NIMBY will take you to court, putting a stop to your construction, and costing you even more in legal fees.
“Irish govt is building IPass centers and housing complexes for immigrants with no charge to the immigrants while the citizens are on long wait list (in years) for housing.”
Gee, that sounds just like Czarina Janet and here “New Mainers”. ๐
Maybe someone should look closer at the municipality ? The whole “Town Manager” system is a breeding ground for corruption. In my town there’s a grocery store, and a gas station, yet I pay property taxes comparable to living in Boston. Houses are emptying out at a record rate, but oddly, the “Town Manager” is driving around in a Land Cruiser worth at least 120K, and has a million dollar home. I can’t even afford to maintain MY home because all of my extra income goes to property taxes. I can’t wait to get out of Maine !
@jill, the rich already pay more than their fairshare why punish the successful? This problem was created by progressive policies, not the rich, well maybe some rich progressives like Pingree, King etc
When a ladder fire truck costs $1M, that should tell you something. Until governments (local, State, and Federal) reduce costs of benefits and pay, then balance their budgets, it’s only going to get worse.
Deporting all illegal aliens and bogus asylum seekers would save Maine Taxpayers millions, increase availability of rental units, lower property taxes, shorten emergency room wait times, restore quality education for Maine students, reduce fraud in welfare programs, increase job openings for Americans, increase wages for Americans, and improve public safety.
Lets try again! When you push the “Green Agenda” by restricting fossil fuel and hydro power housing ~ costs go up. When you force a high basic wage for unskilled jobs ~ costs go up. When you tax investments, profits and assets ~ costs go up.
Adding the Green Energy $275+ a year surcharge to electric bills for wind, solar and battery farms to the mix ~ costs go up.
Not hard to grasp when costs go up housing (rents and insurance) is more expensive. When the state steps in to pay rent in full for two years for “New Mainers” housing at 20% over the normal rents, yup.. costs go up. Add the MEPA, Maine Land Usage regulations, Maine “fair” Housing/Racial Fairness rules is there any doubt why costs are soaring?
” there is a โclear declineโ in housing availability when strict local zoning or minimum lot size ordinances are in place.” Certainly cannot wish to have minimum lot size ordinances: After all, when the neighbors on either side of you have their daughters knocked up, there is no go reason for them not to be allowed to drag a couple of used house trailers on to their quarter acre lots for everybody to live in. Your house, will now be worth half of what it was before, but that is just tough bananas for you in the new socialistic Maine.