AUSTIN -- A new study from the National Low Income Housing Coalition reports Austin is the most expensive city to rent a two bedroom apartment in the state.
On average it costs $1,074 in Austin, compared to $913 in Dallas and $926 in Houston.
It's probably going to get worse, said University of Texas graduate student Ernest Alba. There is no doubt in my mind.
Alba says he originally paid around $700 for a one bedroom apartment near UT campus when he first moved to Austin five years ago. Now he lives near Far West Boulevard to pay the same rate, in what he describes as the smallest unit in the least expensive complex he could find in the area.
It's definitely really, really expensive, said Alba.
Austin voters approved a $65 million affordable housing bond in 2013, which will provide 4,500 additional units in coming years. The last of the 2006 affordable housing bond money is going toward Capital Studios, a project at 11th and Trinity streets in downtown Austin. It will provide 135 efficiency apartments offering rent between $400 and $650 a month, all bills paid. It's expected to open in October and will begin accepting applications in coming months. Residents must meet income requirements.
We are hoping to get the funds out the door and housing built as soon as possible, because we are in dire, dire need, said HousingWorks Austin executive director Mandy De Mayo.
She says the need for affordable rent will only grow as Austin's population is expected to double in the next 20 years.
According to the NLIHC, you have to make $20.65 an hour to afford a two bedroom apartment in Austin. That's more than the Texas average of $16.77 and the U.S. average of $18.92.
Natalie Young, the manager of A+ Apartment Locators, says she's seen prices increase during recent years as the market has become more competitive.
Rents are continuing to go up and a lot of people who are Austinites, they ve been here a long time, but their salaries aren t increasing, said Young. They're being forced to move into an older apartment, a smaller apartment or an apartment in a different part of town just to get one they can afford.
Go here for a breakdown of rent costs in the Austin and Round Rock area over the past 10 years, courtesy of the Austin Board of Realtors.
