Renting has gotten more expensive over the years, like most things, thanks to inflation, but so has the nation’s average wage.
However, the federal minimum wage hasn’t been raised since 2009. That means employers in states that have no minimum wage laws are automatically required to pay workers the same $7.25 an hour that was used when apartments cost almost half as much as they do today.
Even back in 2009, when the median apartment cost around $840 a month, living on a minimum wage salary meant having tight budgets and sacrificing certain luxuries. Now, living off a minimum wage salary feels even more improbable.
South Carolina is one of the few states that has no state minimum wage law, and uses the federal minimum wage. The average rent in Columbia is $1,172 a month, which is 30% cheaper than the national average. Still, someone making $7.25 an hour wouldn’t be able to afford the average Columbia rent unless they didn’t have to pay for groceries, utilities and any other necessities.
But what about the cheapest apartments in the city? Can minimum wage cover even the most affordable places? Here’s what the numbers say.
First off, working a minimum wage job will give someone around $1,257 a month if they’re working 40-hour weeks, according to Indeed.
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