Improve Housing Affordability
As measured by the percentage of households who spend more than 30% of their income for housing
Why Is This Important?
Safe, quality, and affordable housing is vital to our quality of life. Households paying more than 30% for housing are considered housing cost burdened and have difficulty affording other necessities, such as food, transportation, healthcare, etc. In Oakland County, the average monthly home rental cost is $1,104 compared to $888 statewide and many people are priced out of purchasing their first home. Improving affordable housing options is important so residents don’t pay more than they can afford to buy or rent.
Metric Definition
Data presented is the percentage of households that earned < $75,000 in the past 12 months and spent >= 30% of their household income on housing costs. Monthly housing costs include mortgages; real estate taxes; fire, hazard, and flood insurance on the property; utilities, and fuels.
Data source: U.S. Census Bureau - American Community Survey
Analysis
Housing affordability for households earning less than $75,000 per year remained fairly consistent from 2015 to 2019. Since the pandemic, the number has risen to 50.1% of households earning less than $75,000 are spending 30% or more on housing costs.
Current Status
Oakland County’s strategic goal of affordable housing is moving forward with the appointments of the county’s first housing and neighborhood development officer and first housing trust fund manager.
In response to the strategic goals outlined by the County Executive in his 2022 State of the County address, the Board of Commissioners created the Oakland Together Housing Trust Fund last year as a powerful tool to increase the availability of affordable and attainable housing throughout the county. The initiative will provide gap funding to build new housing for working families.
Oakland County is utilizing federal funds to provide $1 million in grants each year to build and rehabilitate. or preserve affordable housing in Oakland County. To help people stay in their homes, the county has invested $2 million in critical home repairs and $2 million in legal aid to assist people facing mortgage foreclosure or eviction.
Learn More
For more information on the programs and services offered by Oakland County, please visit the Neighborhood & Housing Development Office.