Medical Assistant · Miami, FL

98.2 hours of work

cover a month's rent on a one-bedroom in Miami for a medical assistant earning the median $21.60 an hour.

Strained Rank 15 of 20 for Medical Assistants (by rent share of take-home) · Metro median pay is 2% below this job's U.S. median

Median pay
$44,930
per year · $21.60/hr · 18,670 Medical Assistants
1-bedroom rent
$2,121
per month · HUD Fair Market Rent FY2027 (effective Oct 1, 2026)
Take-home
$3,190
per month after federal tax + FICA
Left after rent
$1,069
per month · yours · 66% of take-home

Hours of work = monthly rent ÷ BLS median hourly wage ($2,121 ÷ $21.60). After federal taxes the same rent takes 115.2 h of take-home pay.

EARNINGS STATEMENT FY2027 (effective Oct 1, 2026)
Medical Assistant
Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach, FL
Rate (median, hourly)$21.60
Hours in a month173.3
Gross pay$3,744
Federal income tax−$268
Social Security + Medicare−$286
Take-home$3,190
Rent · 1BR · HUD FMR−$2,121

Rent costs

98.2 hours

of work to cover one month

STUB-01

Wages May 2025 estimates · Rent FY2027 (effective Oct 1, 2026)

01 · Paycheck prints

A month at the median wage, line by line.

Rate $21.60 × 173.3 hours (2,080 ÷ 12) prints gross pay of $3,744.

EARNINGS STATEMENT FY2027 (effective Oct 1, 2026)
Medical Assistant
Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach, FL
Rate (median, hourly)$21.60
Hours in a month173.3
Gross pay$3,744
Federal income tax−$268
Social Security + Medicare−$286
Take-home$3,190
Rent · 1BR · HUD FMR−$2,121

Rent costs

98.2 hours

of work to cover one month

STUB-01

Wages May 2025 estimates · Rent FY2027 (effective Oct 1, 2026)

02 · Taxes peel off

Federal income tax and FICA come off the stub.

2026 single filer, standard deduction. State income tax is not levied in this state.

Federal income tax 2026, single−$268
Social Security + Medicare−$286

Taxes · $554 · peeled

03 · Rent tears away

A strip as tall as the rent.

98.2 h

of work at $21.60/hr pays $2,121, one month of a one-bedroom in Miami. The strip is drawn to scale: $2,121 of a $3,744 gross month (57% of stub).

Background tint · rent burden 66.5% of take-home

Rent · 1BR FMR−$2,121

Hours of work

98.2

HUD Fair Market Rent FY2027 (effective Oct 1, 2026) · Miami metro

04 · What's left is yours

After tax and the 1-bedroom, this remains.

Strained

What's left · yours

$1,069

Take-home before rent$3,190
2BR instead (−$2,564)$626
vs HUD 30%-of-gross rule0.53×

05 · Floor plan

The stub becomes a one-bedroom.

Rent hatches rooms in ledger red, to scale against take-home. Toggle a 2-bedroom — both figures are precomputed HUD FMRs.

1-bedroom floor plan with rent hatched LIVING BED BATH KITCHEN

Hatched share is 66% of take-home (1BR).

06 · Street grid

How Miami compares for Medical Assistants

Hours of work to cover a one-bedroom's rent, all metros, fewest hours first.

Comfortable (rent ≤ 30% of take-home)Stretched (30–40%)Strained (> 40%)

Sorted by hours of work (1-bedroom HUD FMR ÷ median hourly wage), fewest first. Rank on the page still uses rent share of take-home.

# Metro Hours Rent Wage / hr 0 – 52 h (HUD 30% of gross)
01 Minneapolis–St. Paul 56.4 h $1,427 $25.28
02 Detroit 61.6 h $1,167 $18.95
03 Houston 62.3 h $1,261 $20.25
04 Phoenix 66.3 h $1,493 $22.51
05 Philadelphia 70.6 h $1,558 $22.06
06 Baltimore 72.2 h $1,625 $22.50
07 Atlanta 73.1 h $1,619 $22.15
08 Seattle 73.7 h $2,180 $29.57
09 Dallas–Fort Worth 74.1 h $1,536 $20.72
10 Riverside–San Bernardino 75.9 h $1,705 $22.45
11 Denver 76.6 h $1,831 $23.90
12 Tampa 77.0 h $1,648 $21.39
13 Chicago 78.3 h $1,780 $22.73
14 San Francisco 79.7 h $2,290 $28.75
15 Miami 98.2 h $2,121 $21.60
16 San Diego 98.3 h $2,335 $23.76
17 Washington, DC 98.3 h $2,204 $22.42
18 Boston 103.2 h $2,518 $24.39
19 Los Angeles 104.6 h $2,402 $22.96
20 New York 117.3 h $2,729 $23.26

The ledger

One month at the median wage, line by line, in dollars and in hours of work.

LinePer monthHours of workBasis
Gross pay$3,744173.3$44,930 ÷ 12
Federal income tax−$26812.4$3,212/yr ÷ 12
Social Security + Medicare−$28613.3$3,437/yr ÷ 12
Take-home$3,190147.7FL has no wage tax
Rent · 1BR FMR−$2,12198.2HUD FY2027 (effective Oct 1, 2026)
Yours$1,06949.5take-home − rent

Hours = dollars ÷ $21.60; 173.3 = 2,080 hrs ÷ 12. May not sum exactly due to rounding.

Hours of work for rent, by pay level

Same $2,121 one-bedroom, different medical assistant paychecks.

10th · $17.14 123.7 h
25th · $18.21 116.5 h
Median · $21.60 98.2 h
75th · $22.67 93.6 h
90th · $24.97 85.0 h

Bar scale includes the HUD 30%-of-gross line at 52.0 h (52 h rounded). Same 1-bedroom, different paychecks (BLS wage percentiles ÷ 2,080 hrs).

Take-home vs rent

Monthly take-home pay: $3,190 1-bedroom Rent $2,121 Left $1,069 2-bedroom Rent $2,564

Where Medical Assistants keep more after rent

This ranking uses rent share of take-home (rank 15 of 20), not hours.

≤30% of take-home30–40%>40%30% line

Sources & method

  1. U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS), May 2025 — metropolitan areas — vintage: May 2025 estimates. File: oesm25ma.zip, retrieved 2026-10-06.
  2. U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD USER), Fair Market Rents, FY2027 — vintage: FY2027 (effective Oct 1, 2026). File: FY27_FMRs.xlsx, retrieved 2026-10-05.
  3. Internal Revenue Service, Rev. Proc. 2025-32 (tax year 2026 brackets, $16,100 standard deduction) and SSA's $184,500 wage base, used for the take-home estimate.
  4. HUD FMR area: Miami-Miami Beach-Kendall, FL HUD Metro FMR Area (METRO33100MM5000).
  5. Occupation: SOC 31-9092 Medical Assistants.

Take-home = annual wage − 2026 federal income tax (single filer, standard deduction) − Social Security and Medicare. State and local income taxes are not deducted. Wages are May 2025 estimates; rents are HUD Fair Market Rents FY2027 (effective Oct 1, 2026). Full details on the methodology page. Page data last rebuilt 2026-10-06.

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