Affordable v Low Cost There is a great debate going on about affordable housing with many people inferring that affordable means anyone can afford it. That's not the case. Based on the generally accepted affordability standard of paying no more than 30% of income for housing costs, the hourly wage a worker must earn to afford the Fair Market Rent (FMR) for a two-bedroom home is called the Housing Wage.more In California, the Fair Market Rent (FMR) for a two-bedroom apartment is $1,149. At present, the estimated mean (average) wage for a Californian renter is $14.61 an hour. In order to afford the FMR for a two-bedroom apartment at this wage, a renter must work 60 hours per week, 52 weeks per year. Or, working 40 hours per week year-round, a household must include 1.5 worker(s) earning the mean renter wage in order to make the two-bedroom FMR affordable. If the apartment rent in Santa Monica is, say, $1800 per month, then in order to afford this monthly rent,you need to make at least $34.62 per hour, or $72,000.00 per year. This calculation assumes you will spend no more than 30% of your income on rent (the generally accepted standard of affordability). If you earn minimum wage in this state ($6.75), then you will have to work 205 hours per week to have an income high enough to afford this rent.That is high not low cost! calculate your personal housing wage based on your current rent If Affordable is not Low Cost, what is?