The average millennial earns just over $684 a week, or $2,736 a month, according to financial website SmartAssest, which pulled data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. But in some of the country's more popular states, that income won't get you very far in terms of renting a place to live.
That's according to HowMuch.net, which calculated the average price of rental properties in every state using data from Zillow, and determined how much money a household would need to make in order to afford that rental price. The researchers based their estimates on the advice that housing costs should take up no more than 30 percent of your income. More than that and the government considers you moderately or severely cost-burdened.
Below, the map shows how much monthly income is needed to rent a home in every state without being burdened. The darker the color a state is, the more expensive it is to rent there.
HowMuch.net: Monthly income needed to afford average rent in every state.
Based on the report, here are the top 10 places where you'd need to earn the most money to afford to rent the average home:
Washington, D.C.
Monthly income needed: $8,487
California
Monthly income needed: $8,313
Hawaii
Monthly income needed: $7,806
New York
Monthly income needed: $7,223
Massachusetts
Monthly income needed: $7,193
New Jersey
Monthly income needed: $6,717
Colorado
Monthly income needed: $6,197
Washington
Monthly income needed: $5,993
Maryland
Monthly income needed: $5,863
Connecticut
Monthly income needed: $5,590
As the map shows, it's cheaper to rent in the South and the Midwest: "There is a decent-sized cluster of states in the middle part of the country across the South where relatively modest incomes afford an average sized rental — from Iowa to Alabama, households only need to make less than $3,500 each month, or less than $42,000 a year," reports HowMuch.net.
"Compare that to the group of red states in the Northeast like New York, Massachusetts and New Jersey, where workers need upward of $80,000 - $90,000 a year."
Wherever you fall on the map, living within your means and employing some common-sense budgeting techniques can help you save in the long run. Here are some tips to get started.
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