SAN DIEGO (KGTV) - High rent prices in San Diego, and the rest of the country, for that matter, are having a significant effect on how much money some workers are left with after paying rent.
According to research conducted by Apartment List, across the United States, post-rent wages for those in the health care, management and engineering fields (or what the company calls "knowledge workers") went up 6 percent from 2005 to 2015.
Meanwhile, blue-collar and service workers across the country saw their post-rent wages decline by 5 percent and 7 percent, respectively, in the same 10-year period.
A "post-rent wage" is money that remains after a worker pays rent.
In San Diego metro area, the median price of a 2-bedroom apartment was $1,980 in May 2017.
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But while rent prices increase in San Diego, so have the post-rent wages for knowledge workers in the area -- 6.4% from 2005-2015.
Apartment List research shows over the same 10-year span, San Diego blue collar workers' post-rent wages went down 3.7% percent, while service workers saw their post-rent wages go down by 8.6%.
According to Apartment List: "Unequal wage growth combined with rising rents has led to an increase in inequality between blue-collar, knowledge, and service workers. Although many metros continue to grow, only six managed to achieve post-rent wage growth for all three sectors of workers. As many low-wage workers struggle to pay the rent, policy solutions like increasing the affordable housing stock, improving worker pay, and using public transportation to connect urban centers more affordable suburbs remain critical."
