By Kate Murphy, Axios

Local households need to earn about $50 per hour to afford the average monthly asking rent of $2,606 in San Diego County, according to a new housing report.

The big picture: San Diego is the 12th-priciest rental market in the U.S., and while renting is cheaper than homeownership, it’s unaffordable for many.

Zoom in: The income needed to afford rent is nearly three times San Diego’s minimum hourly wage of $17.75, per the San Diego County 2026 Affordable Housing Needs Report released Friday. Those employees earn about $3,077 per month.

• Home health and personal care aides, child care workers, janitors and cleaners, and retail sales employees all earn less than $4,000 a month, per the report.
• Asking rents in San Diego County increased by about 22% or $466 between 2020 and 2025, per the report.