$104K a year is 'low-income' for single people in 3 Bay Area counties, according to state data

San Francisco Chronicle / June 22, 2023

If you make $104,000 per year and live alone in San Francisco, San Mateo or Marin county, you’re considered low-income, according to new state data.

The California Department of Housing and Community Development released its 2023 income levels, which it calculates annually based on federal guidelines and uses to set eligibility caps for affordable housing programs, on June 6.

The category limits — ranked as extremely low, very low, low, median and moderate — are based on the estimated median income in metro areas, which is determined using census data and inflation data from the Consumer Price Index. The San Francisco metro area, for example, includes San Francisco, San Mateo and Marin counties.

While the income limit calculations are based on metro areas, they apply to housing programs at the county and local levels.

Link (probable paywall): https://www.sfchronicle.com/bayarea/article/low-income-median-levels-18164328.php

According to the link, these Bay Area counties have had the highest median incomes in California for the last seven years: San Francisco, San Mateo, Santa Clara and Marin.

Further link highlights:

• Currently (2023), Santa Clara County’s median income for a four-person household is $181,300

• Currently (2023), Santa Clara County's low-income maximum for a single person is $96,000

• According Zillow, the typical monthly asking rent in the San Francisco metro area is $3,150 (to comfortably afford that, a person or household would need to bring in $126,040 per year)

• According to listings site Redfin, the monthly cost of owning a home in the Bay Area is twice as expensive as renting