A study by Point2 Homes shows that despite The Bronx’s median home sales price of $251,000 being under the national median of $258,300, our borough is the 12th most unaffordable housing market in the nation and 16th in North America due to a low median household income of $34,299.
The Bronx is considered severely unaffordable with a median multiple of 6.7 which is derived by the median home sales price divided by the median household income.
Earlier this year, another report showed that 71% of Bronx residents are at risk of being displaced―the highest rate in the New York region.
Nationwide, Manhattan took the #1 spot with median multiple of 15.6, Brooklyn at #3 with a median multiple of 13.1, and Queens at #10 and a median multiple of 7.9. Staten Island was the only affordable borough using those parameters.
Overall, New York City’s 5 boroughs ranked as the 4th most unaffordable city in the nation at 12.1.
This affordability crisis in our borough is one of the reasons that Bronxites are at greater risk of being displaced as gentrification continues to push through inflating home prices even further out of reach of residents.
One of the ways to combat displacement is through home ownership but even that is almost impossible for the average Bronx resident.
We must do better for our communities and instead of pandering to developers we should be developing our workforce to be able to get higher paying jobs.
