Hamilton renters need to make at least $33 per hour to afford a new apartment

The average Hamiltonian would need to earn more than double the minimum wage to afford a vacant apartment in the city, new data from Zoocasa shows.
The report found a Steeltown resident would need to make at least $33.27 per hour — or an annual income of $64,875 — to comfortably rent a one-bedroom apartment in the city, at an average cost of $1,730 per month.
Meanwhile, the median income for a Hamiltonian was $42,400 in 2021 — a gap of more than $20,000 in earnings when it comes to affordability, according to census data.
The analysis is based on data from rental platform Zumper, the previous Ontario minimum wage ($16.55 per hour) and a recommendation from the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC) that no more than 32 per cent of a person’s income be spent on housing.
Tom Cooper, director of the Hamilton Roundtable for Poverty Reduction, told The Spectator the report shows minimum wage “just doesn’t cut it” when it comes to paying rent in the city.
The situation becomes “even more desperate” for those who rely on social assistance programs like Ontario Works (OW) and Ontario Disability Support Program (ODSP), Cooper noted.
“There is no way that low-wage workers can afford even the most modest rental accommodations,” he said. “It’s one of the reasons we’ve seen such a significant increase in homelessness.”
The disparity between wages and the cost of housing grows even larger when looking at the cost of an average two-bedroom apartment at $2,100, which would require an hourly wage of $40.38 or an annual salary of $78,750, according to the report.
Even if a couple earning minimum wage moved in together, the report found they would be just shy of comfortably affording the average one-bedroom apartment with their combined income.
Rising rental rates have forced some folks to double and sometimes triple up in units not suitable for roommates, as that may be the only way they can afford to remain housed, Cooper said.
Rental rates in the city have soared over the last four years, according to data from Rentals.ca, which produces monthly reports based on listings on its site as well as RentFaster.ca.
Last month, the average one-bedroom in the city rented for $1,767, according to Rentals.ca. Meanwhile, in September 2020, that same unit would have gone for $1,485 — an increase of $282 over the last four years.
“It has pretty much become a requirement for low-income earners to have roommates,” said Cooper.
With housing eating up a growing portion of Hamiltonians’ incomes, other needs are being pushed to the wayside, added Cooper, pointing to an increased use of food banks and outreach programs.
But wages that have not kept up with the cost of rent are not the only factor at play, noted Cooper.
A lack of “real rent control” has also caused rates to skyrocket, said Cooper. In Ontario, units occupied before 2018 are protected by rent control, which regulates how much the rent can be increased each year.
However, rental rates in Ontario are not controlled between tenants, meaning they can rise at whatever rate a landlord wants when a unit is vacated and put back on the market.
A report from CMHC earlier this year found that when an average two-bedroom apartment in Hamilton changed hands, the rent increased by nearly 42 per cent.
“It leaves people in incredibly impossible and desperate situations,” said Cooper. “And it’s not sustainable in the long run or even in the medium term.”
To combat the growing housing crisis, the report called on politicians to consider increasing the minimum wage, implementing stricter rent controls and building more affordable housing.
“These are big public policy realities that need to be addressed,” said Cooper. “And should have been years ago, now we’re feeling the pinch as a society.”