Newsday . . LI housing costs 24% more than in 2000, and we’re earning 1.6% less, report says

By Maura McDermott

Long Islanders’ housing costs have risen by 24% since 2000 even as median household income has fallen by 1.6%, according to a new report that recommends building up the region’s downtowns and allowing more housing options.

Nearly 6 in 10 renters and more than one in three homeowners on Long Island shell out more than 30% of their income for rent and utilities or homeownership costs such as mortgage, property taxes and insurance, the Manhattan-based nonprofit planning and advocacy group Regional Plan Association said in a report released Wednesday. The report, at nwsdy.li/RPA, includes detailed profiles of Long Island’s 13 towns, two cities and 96 villages, as well as 85 of the region’s largest unincorporated areas.

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