By: VHFA

May 7, 2009

The Center for Housing Policy today released a report that shows Burlington, Vermont, is the 33rd most expensive metropolitan area in the country for housing rentals.

For homeownership, Burlington ties with Sacramento, Calif., as the 56th most expensive in the nation.

(San Francisco takes top "honors" on both lists.)

The numbers come from "Paycheck to Paycheck: Wages and the Cost of Housing in America," which examines the housing affordability of 210 metropolitan areas for 60 occupations.

"The recent decline in home prices has not resolved the nation's housing affordability problems," said Jeffrey Lubell, Executive Director of the Center for Housing Policy.

"Working families — including most of the workers who will be hired as a result of federal spending in the stimulus package — still cannot afford to buy a home in most markets, and many also struggle to afford their rents."

The Center for Housing Policy is the research affiliate of the National Housing Conference (NHC).

You can query the database yourself at the NHC Web site to see how different occupations fair in your neck of the woods.

Download the PDF fact sheets from that Web page to see all metro areas ranked.