TUCSON & ILLEGALS: PART 4

Here's the headline and framing of the issue:

Illegal labor helps put Tucsonans into homes
Without immigrants, prices would soar, experts agree
By Brady McCombs and Thomas Stauffer
Arizona Daily Star
Tucson, Arizona Published: 06.14.2006

Without illegal labor, home builders would have to pay more to entice workers from other parts of the country or those employed here in other industries. Star research based on economists' projections estimates that illegal labor holds down prices by as much as $38,000 on a median-priced $267,000 Tucson home.

Big business may be reluctant to do anything to slow the growth of Tucson's $2 billion-a-year home-building industry, researchers say. And buyers may balk at higher prices and longer waits for their new homes, builders fear.

Home builders scoff at the notion that they could absorb the higher cost of legal labor without passing it on to buyers. Increased land and materials prices already have cut into profits to such an extent that some builders say they may leave the industry altogether.

"The people who are going to be most affected by this are the ones who have the least ability to pay," Tucson builder Michael Keith says. "The impact on affordable housing — on entry-level housing and low-income rentals — could be catastrophic."

The average hourly wage for Tucson construction workers is $14.42, Bureau of Labor Statistics estimates for March show. That ranks below wages in Western cities including Phoenix, Salt Lake City, Denver, Las Vegas, Los Angeles, San Diego, Seattle and Portland, Ore. — and the national average.


Mr. Keith should realize that affordable homes are already out of the reach of most Tucsonans:

Can you afford a home?
If so, you're in the minority in Tucson, as housing costs greatly outpace wages
By Joseph Barrios
ARIZONA DAILY STAR
Tucson, Arizona Published: 05.21.2006

From the end of 2004 to the end of 2005, the area's median income went up by 1 percent to $50,600, while the median home price went up by 30 percent to $214,000, according to sales figures from the last quarter.

In 21 of the 32 ZIP codes that cover the metropolitan area, residents' median incomes were too low to afford the payments on the median-priced home in the metro area, assuming a conventional 30-year mortgage and a 5 percent down payment. In 29 of the 32 ZIP codes, the median household made less than necessary to buy a home in their area.


I think Henry Ford had the correct answer when he was asked why he paid his workers so much ($5/day): "So they can buy my cars."