Four or more people in your Fresno home? Then you’re part of a nation-worst housing issue
Fresno has the most people per household and the highest percentage of families of large U.S. cities, according to a recent report that analyzed data from the U.S. Census Bureau.
Four other California cities made the top 10 list for fullest houses in America: Los Angeles, San Jose, Sacramento and San Diego.
When all U.S. cities were compared, not just the largest 40, a handful of other San Joaquin Valley cities ranked higher for having the highest percentage of families — housing children under the age of 18. Those are: Madera (No. 2), Hanford (No. 5), Visalia (No. 6), Merced (No. 10) and Stockton (No. 12). They are followed by Fresno (No. 15), Bakersfield (No. 17) and Modesto (No. 18).
These listings are in a report from Lombardo Homes that looked at data from the 2019 American Community Survey conducted by the Census Bureau. A spokesperson for Lombardo Homes said the report was made to learn more about family planning trends and COVID-19’s impact to see where there could be a demand for housing.
The report shows the average size of a Fresno household is 3.57 people, and that 35.8% of its households are families with children under the age of 18.
California ranks second nationally for the fullest homes in America, with an average size of 3.3 people per home.
Fresno housing issues
Housing issues have long been a concern in Fresno.
Fresno data have shown there aren’t enough affordable housing units in Fresno to meet its need.
“The unfortunate reality that we are currently facing is that increased rents and decreased incomes are having a huge impact on families throughout Fresno County,” Tracewell Hanrahan, deputy executive director of the Fresno Housing Authority, told The Bee on Tuesday.
“We know that nearly 70% of families are paying more than half of their income towards rent, which leaves very little to feed their children and pay bills like child-care and transportation costs. The need for more affordable housing in our community is greater than ever and Fresno Housing continues prioritizing the development of high-quality affordable units.”
A 2020 report about Fresno County from the California Housing Partnership found that 35,244 low-income renter households in Fresno County do not have access to an affordable home.
Renters need to earn $19.66 per hour — 1.5 times the state minimum wage — to afford the average monthly rent of $1,022 in Fresno County. Other statistics from the partnership’s report: 69% of extremely low-income households pay more than half of their income on housing, compared to just 3% of moderate-income households.
An effort is underway to house homeless who have been living on the side of Fresno freeways, called Project Off-Ramp. Some Fresno motels are being converted to shelter homeless.
Fresno has had numerous issues with unhealthy housing conditions and “slumlords.” Earlier this year, a man died in a fire at an apartment complex that had been the subject of a city emergency declaration in 2015.
