SEATTLE – Workers in Washington state earn the fourth-highest median wage in the nation, but that doesn’t appear to equate with a higher standard of living.
Business.org compared each state’s median wage to the cost of renting a 1-bedroom apartment and found that as a whole, Washington ranks 46th in the nation for rent affordability.
Workers earn a median $46,100 per year, but the average cost of renting that 1-bedroom apartment is $1,783 per month. All told, it means the average Washingtonian will have to work 80.4 hours to pay off that monthly rent.
Only New York, California, Massachusetts, Florida and Hawaii rank worse. Wyoming rated the best.
Even Seattle, where the median wage is $50,860, but the average rent is $1,890 per month, meaning it’ll take 77.3 hours of pay per month to pay off that rent.