ATLANTA — A study on real estate costs and American worker wages shows the average retail employee earns less than half of what they need to afford rent.
According to real estate firm Redfin, the typical American retail worker earns about $34,436 each year.
To afford an average apartment, they’d need to earn $71,172, which has a monthly rent of about $1,779.
[DOWNLOAD: Free WSB-TV News app for alerts as news breaks]
In Atlanta, retail workers earn even less, only bringing home $32,211. To afford rent in the city, Redfin says they’d need to earn $66,56 per year, with typical rent being $1,664 per month.
Compared to the overall United States, Atlanta’s wage to rent gap is 51.6%, right in line with the national gap.
TRENDING STORIES:
- Prosecutor moves to drop charges against Donald Trump in Fulton County
- Cobb County shopping plaza being forced to close just ahead of the holiday season
- This Georgia state park has just been deemed one of the country’s ‘most snake-infested’
While the data for wages earned and rent are described in its analysis as “typical,” Redfin noted that the report isn’t quite on par with the full picture.
“The reality is that many retail workers never actually seek out the typical apartment because it’s out of their price range," according to Redfin. "Retail workers with wages in the top 25%, for example, still earn 44.2% less than they would need to afford the typical apartment."
Redfin said, based on a recent survey the company commissioned, that roughly 23% of renters in America are struggling to afford their rent, as of May.
According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics’ most recent Employment Situation report, there were about 15.5 million retail trade workers in the U.S. in September, not seasonally adjusted.
With seasonal adjustments, the BLS reported there were closer to 15.6 million.
The Georgia Department of Labor reports that, as of August, there were more than 850,000 retail employees in the state, split between retail trade, food and beverage ,general merchandise and sporting goods, hobby, musical instruments, books and miscellaneous retailers.
In the metro Atlanta area, the Federal Reserve Bank reported there were about 297,000 retail trade employees, as of August.
[SIGN UP: WSB-TV Daily Headlines Newsletter]
©2025 Cox Media Group
