Zoocasa used Apartments.com’s 50-city rent figures to calculate how many monthly hours a minimum-wage worker must put in to afford a one-bedroom. The results show wide regional variation and that many cities require more than a full month of full-time work at minimum wage.
Only 10 of the 50 cities require fewer than 100 hours of minimum-wage work per month to cover average one-bedroom rent.
Twenty cities (40%) require more than 175 hours per month—more than a standard full-time month—meaning overtime, a second job, or shared housing would be needed.
Charleston, SC tops the list at 267 hours per month to afford the average one-bedroom ($1,937) at the federal $7.25 minimum wage.
Zoocasa analyzed Apartments.com's 50-city rent report to calculate how many hours per month a minimum-wage worker must work to pay average one-bedroom rent in those cities. The study compares local minimum wages to reported average rents and translates the result into hours required per month. The picture is uneven: a minority of cities are affordable within a typical full-time month, while many require well beyond that.
Charleston leads the list. At a $7.25 federal minimum wage, the average one-bedroom rent there is $1,937 and a worker would need about 267 hours per month to afford it. That's roughly 167% of a typical month's wages at that hourly rate.
The Northeast presents persistent affordability barriers. New York City requires about 247 hours per month at its $17 minimum wage to cover an average one-bedroom priced at $4,197. Boston requires about 241 hours at a $15 minimum wage to cover a $3,617 average rent. Philadelphia requires about 246 hours. Nearby New Jersey cities follow a similar pattern: Hoboken requires about 245 hours (minimum wage $15.92) and Jersey City about 207 hours (minimum wage $15.92).
When required hours exceed a normal full-time month, a minimum-wage worker has limited practical options: work significant overtime, hold multiple jobs, rely on roommates or family, or obtain outside financial assistance. The report's hour-based framing makes clear how wage levels and rental prices interact: even relatively higher local minimum wages can leave workers struggling if local rents are proportionally higher.
Zoocasa used Apartments.com's 50-city rent averages for one-bedroom units and compared those rents to each city's minimum wage. The monthly hours required equals monthly rent divided by the hourly minimum wage. The study references a typical full-time month as roughly 160–173.3 hours (37.5–40 hours per week) to provide context for what "affordable" means in hours worked.
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