The Housing Divide

(RECAP: A giant excavator shovels hundreds of crumbled cinderblocks along West Main Street, clearing the remnants of an old office building. A new six-story apartment building called The Standard is set to take its place, adding nearly 650 bedrooms to Charlottesville’s rental market. But not one of these will be priced as affordable for lower-income residents in the city. Instead, they’re aimed at University of Virginia students. Most 2-bedrooms in Charlottesville range between $1,000 to $1,800 a month, according to a recent study commissioned by the city. That’s on par with Virginia Beach, according to U.S. Census data, and exceeds average rents in cities such as Richmond, Roanoke, and Harrisonburg. Anecdotally, people are moving away, to places within driving distance, such as Waynesboro or Scottsville, but where 2-bedrooms go for less than half as much.)