It's interesting that Seattle's rent has raised 38 percent, but I am left wondering if some of that is related to their ~37% minimum wage increase in the last year.
Unlikely. Someone earning minimum wage couldn't live there anyways. The more likely culprit are the hordes of tech people moving into every nook and cranny.
What possible connection could there be? Does minimum wage now change property values? Are all housing units in Seattle occupied by minimum wage workers? The average rent in Seattle for a one bedroom apartment is around $1600, which is around 100% of what a minimum wage worker made there two years ago - coincidence or no?
No need for the snark, friend. Is it really that much of a stretch to think that minimum wage increases (more money in the hands of lower-income earners) semi-proportionately increases localized prices?
Do you truly think it's necessary that all houses in Seattle must be occupied by minimum wage workers in order for it to affect the cost of living?
It's a lot easier for people to see this argument with basic income than with minimum wage, but the signaling on property owners ends up being the same whether you know for certain all your tenants now have an extra $x in funds or just some of them might now be getting a raise to the new minimum wage. From the property manager perspective, suddenly they're getting more demand on units than they were previously, so they balance that by increasing rents. An increased minimum wage can play a part in that rise in demand even if no single person can afford an apartment on their own at minimum wage. For instance perhaps there's a group of 4 people cramped in one apartment, but now with all of them getting more money, they can afford to split off into two groups of 2. Until the landlord raises rents, anyway, because they aren't enough units for everyone to do that and building new units takes time.
King County property taxes have been steadily going up, that's a bigger factor than minimum wage. Even in the sprawl around Seattle, prices have gone up, but I hope they'll see a regression since the commuting situation is if anything worse than it was even just a few years ago especially on the Eastside with the 405 toll lanes.
