The United States Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) released new income limits last month and it turns out that a family of four that has an annual income of $84,450 or less qualifies as low income in Orange County. Even a single person living alone and earning $58,450 or less a year qualifies as low income in Orange County. High rents and home prices are driving up income limits in Southern California. Over the past seven years, apartment rents in Orange County have increased 20 percent and the median sale price of a house has increased by 40 percent. Cesar Covarrubias, executive director at the Irvine-based affordable housing advocacy group Kennedy Commission, stated:

When you tell somebody that’s making $70,000 that they’re low income, they go, ‘What? That’s low income?’ Unfortunately, that’s what comes from living in a high-cost county… That makes it difficult for working families at all levels.

HUD’s income calculations are used by government and private agencies to determine eligibility for various assistance programs such as mortgage assistance and rent subsidy housing. According to HUD’s report, the median income in Orange County is $88,000 this year, which is more than Los Angeles County’s median income of $64,300. Orange County was beat out by the San Francisco area, in terms of a high median income, which is at $115,300 a year. Extremely low income for a family of four in Orange County is $31,300 a year, which is the limit for families that qualify for programs such as Section 8 rental assistance. This just goes to show how out of control housing is getting in California.

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