PolicyLink and PERE
79
An Equity Profile of Orange County
All Low-wage All Rental*
Affordable
Rental*
All Jobs:
All Housing
Low-wage
Jobs-
Affordable
Rentals
California 15,614,666 3,791,046 12,807,387 5,692,346
773,100 1.2 4.9
Orange 1,532,322 345,281 1,017,012 424,498 23,549 1.5 14.7
*Includes only those units paid for in cash
rent.
Jobs
(2014)
Housing
(2012-2016)
Jobs-Housing Ratios
Jobs-housing mismatch for low-wage workers
The jobs-housing mismatch for low-wage workers is greater in Orange County than the state overall
Connectedness
76. Low-Wage Jobs, Affordable Rental Housing, and Jobs-Housing Ratios, 2016
Source: U.S. Census Bureau.
Note: Data on the number of affordable rental units represent a 2012 through 2016 average, while data on the number of low-wage jobs are from 2014 and are
calculated on a place-of-work basis.
(continued)
The Orange County ratio of low-wage jobs
to affordable housing ratio demonstrates
how many low-income jobs there are
compared to the number of affordable
housing units. When the ratio is larger it
indicates that there are more low-wage
jobs than affordable housing. In this case
the county low-wage jobs to affordable
rental housing ratio is higher than the ratio
for the state. This indicates that there is a
lower availability of affordable rental
housing for low-wage workers in the
county relative to the state overall.
So while there is a jobs-housing mismatch
for low-wage workers throughout
California, the challenge of affordable
housing for low-wage workers is
particularly acute in Orange County.
