Feeling the pain

Startling study shows how many Austinites struggle to afford rent

Rent is a burden for many Austin residents.

Photo by Katie Friel

When it comes to paying rent, many Austinites carry a pretty big burden, according to a new study.

The r esearch, conducted by listings site Apartment List, shows almost half of renters in Austin — 49.3 percent — struggled to pay rent in 2018. The analysis is based on data from the U.S. Census Bureau.

Apartment List found 26.1 percent of Austin renters face a “moderate” burden, while the burden is “severe” for 23.2 percent. The website defines a cost-burdened household as one where rent eats up more than 30 percent of household income. A severe cost burden means a household spends at least half of its income on rent.

Median monthly rent in Austin grew 28 percent from 2008 to 2018, the report says, while median annual income for renters grew 23 percent during the same period. In 2018, the median monthly rent in Austin was $1,307, with the median annual income for renters at $51,442.

Among the country’s 100 largest metro areas, 49.7 percent of renters were cost-burdened in 2018.

In Texas, the study indicates 50.4 percent of San Antonio renters were burdened last year, while only 47.2 percent of renters in Dallas-Fort Worth were burdened. Like Austin, Houston stood at 49.3 percent.

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OG CBD

Top medical cannabis dispensary buds in Lakeline with new pickup store

Photo courtesy of Texas Original

Texas Original has opened its northmost Austin location in Lakeline.

Folks north of Austin can now find more relief closer to them with the opening of a new facility for cannabis prescription pickup.

Texas Original is now open in the Lakeline area at 10222 Pecan Park Blvd., continuing to expand the brand's services throughout Central Texas. While Austinites may be used to more recreational cannabis stores, Texas Original's main clientele are patients managing things like cancer, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), and even dementia.

In Texas, patients can obtain medical cannabis prescriptions through online clinics or local physicians registered with the Compassionate Use Registry of Texas; In Texas Original's case, the dispensary connects candidates for medical cannabis with partnering clinics via an online form to close the loop between prescription and pickup.

Texas Original (formerly Compassionate Cultivation) opened the first public medical dispensary in the state (out of Manchaca) and started serving patients in 2018 with the motto “Grown for Texans by Texans.” The entire operation — from the cultivation of plants to the formulation of products — is based in the state. In 2023, Texas Original was named the best medical marijuana dispensary in the Austin American-Statesman's Community Choice Awards.

This is now Texas Original’s fourth location in Central Texas along with its headquarters and dispensary in South Austin, two other stores in Waco and San Antonio, and many others throughout the state.

“Opening a full-time pickup location that serves our growing community in North Austin and its surrounding suburbs is another step toward creating comprehensive medical cannabis access for all patients throughout Texas,” said CEO Nico Richardson in a release.

To celebrate the opening, Texas Original is partnering with a telehealth medicine clinic to offer free one-year prescriptions to 50 customers at the North Austin location on a first-come first-serve basis. Patients can visit the store this week to book an appointment with the telemedicine clinic’s registered physicians to receive a prescription for medical cannabis.

For more product information and hours of operation for all of Texas Original locations, visit texasoriginal.com. Hours of operation at Lakeline are Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays from 10 am to 6 pm, with plans to expand to six days a week in the upcoming months.

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