UNLV Study Says to be a Homebuyer in Las Vegas Requires $119K Annual Salary
LAS VEGAS, NV – Illustrating how rising prices in the United States are impacting the average family, a new study by the University of Nevada, Las Vegas’ Lied Center for Real Estate notes that homebuyers in Las Vegas need to be earning an annual salary of at least $119,000 in order to afford a home in the region’s current median price range, which is in the neighborhood of $400,000.
We compare the cost of single-family housing with wage data across 627 occupations to assess Southern Nevada’s paycheck-to-mortgage gap,” the study’s summary states. “With a median monthly housing cost of $2,975, a household must earn $119,012 annually to afford a median-priced home.”
The current median household income in Las Vegas is $80,028, according to the Lied Center.
The study singles out members of Las Vegas’ leisure and hospitality workers are being especially hard-hit by the high cost of housing.
To meet this mortgage threshold, a single-income household must earn an hourly wage of $57.22. However, only 6.1 percent of all occupations in Las Vegas pay at or above this amount,” Lied Center researchers say. “For a dual-income household, each earner must make at least $28.61 per hour, a wage achieved by only 46.6 percent of local occupations. The situation is especially dire for minimum-wage workers: a single-income household would need to work 191 hours per week, an impossible requirement given that there are only 168 hours in a week. For a dual-minimum wage household, each person would need to work 95.5 hours per week, the equivalent of nearly 2.5 jobs”
The study goes on to say that the lack of affordable housing options in Las Vegas could eventually interfere with the city’s currently strong business and economic growth.
This widening affordability gap may threaten Southern Nevada’s long-term economic development goals,” the study says. “Despite the region’s business-friendly environment, strategic location, and favorable tax structure, companies may hesitate to relocate or expand if local housing options remain economically out of reach for much of the workforce.”
Shelter Realty Property Management specializes in the areas of Henderson, Las Vegas and North Las Vegas, NV. Feel free to give us a call at 702.376.7379 so we can answer any questions you may have.
Christopher Boyle is an expert investigative journalist for SEARCHEN NETWORKS® and reports for independent news and media organizations in the United States. Christopher keeps a keen-eye on what’s happening in the Vegas real estate market on behalf of Shelter Realty Property Management