Housing costs in Flagstaff continue to increase, making housing affordability a greater challenge for households in our community. According to Housing Solutions of Northern Arizona’s annual Rental Attainability Report, the average cost of a 2-bedroom apartment in our community is now $1,758/mo. In order to afford the average 2-bedroom apartment without paying more than 30% of gross income on housing, a household must earn approximately $5,837 a month or $70,040 annually. That is a 13.7% increase from the average cost of a 2-bedroom apartment when HSNA did its survey in 2020-2021.
For low-income households, the challenge of affordable housing is more severe. A full-time, minimum-wage earner, making $15.50/hr. would need to work more than two full-time jobs (86.9 hours per week), to afford a two-bedroom apartment at the average rental rate.