What % of income do people REALLY pay for rent?

[Hester Eastman]

Originally Posted by slim04

$1700 for the avg. 1BR in Arlington seems really high. I'm sure that figure includes a bunch of luxury apartments in the Clarendon corridor. I'd be curious to see what the median rent is for 1BR is Arlington.

I see a lot of places under $1200 for a 1BR, particularly in So. Arlington or places without a lot of amenities.

The last time I rented I was a GS-11 and spent about 21% of my gross income on rent (I remember the realtors saying that you shouldn't spend more than 25-30% of your gross income on housing). I'm guessing that was probably 26% income net of taxes. It was a 750 sq ft 1BR condo in Falls Church. It wasn't the rent that was killing me, it was the student loans.

Regarding average rent,, I found this on the Arlington County website:
The 2007 Rent & Vacancy Survey showed an average rent for all multi-family rental units in Arlington of $1,576. That figure represents a 6% increase (or almost $100) over 2006. This compares to a 3% increase last year. The average rent for garden apartments was $1,245; for elevator units, $1,727. The income required to pay the 2007countywide average rent is 67% of Area Median Income (AMI), up from 52% of median in 2000. The HUD-estimated 2007 Area Median Income for a family of four is $94,500. Vacancy rates increased slightly to 2.9%, reflecting a tight rental market.


That means the $1750 I'm finding is on target for what I'm looking for.

BTW, I believe the guideline is to pay 25-30 percent of you NET income on rent, not your gross income. If it was 25% of your gross income I could take my pick of buildings!

Thank you very much for taking the time to give your feedback.

[OrdinarySoul]

Originally Posted by Hester Eastman

May I ask if you're single and living alone? As a couple we paid 15% of our net income for rent.

Yep. I'm single and live alone. I live in Ballston area. If I move further out and get a roommate, the housing cost would be lower.