Low-Income Workers Seeing Housing Woes

[southernleftylady]

http://news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&u=/ap/20040720/ap_on_bi_ge/affordable_housing
WASHINGTON - Pay raises for many low- and moderate-income jobs generally aren't keeping up with soaring housing costs, with workers like janitors and sales clerks most often feeling the pinch, said a study being released Tuesday by an affordable housing coalition.

[candy]

1. This is news?

[southernleftylady]

2. must be to some people n/t

[Kanary]

3. Only low-income workers matter now?

Disabled people, retired seniors, etc...... ?????

I've posted before, there is a big cut coming in Section 8 housing next year...... not much concern about that here at DU.

:shrug:

Kanary

[southernleftylady]

5. Well I would like to know more about it if you dont mind linking again

plese :)

[Kanary]

6. Thank you for asking.........

I would if I could.

It was in my local paper, I didn't save the article.

I called my local Rep, and they didn't know about it.

It has something to do with the budget proposal.

I simply can't commit my life to trying to unearth it.

It just doesn't matter to most people.

When I posted about it, it sank like a rock. Just not "sexy" enough. Only the lives of others matter.

Sorry, I don't know how to get more info...... I tried.


Kanary

[southernleftylady]

7. Shoot I feel guilty for what happened to your post now

and Im new here lol..
well shoot could you give me a recap of what it said if you dont mind :D

[salvorhardin]

9. Here's a direct link...

You might want to refer your local Representative to this as well. A 1 BILLION dollar cut, putting Section 8 Housing at 1.6 billion dollars below the level to maintain current level of assistance. I predict homelessness will soar if this is implemented.

http://www.cbpp.org/7-9-04hous.htm#2.

[Kanary]

11. Thank you for the link!!

I spent so much time, and so many headaches, and got nowhere.

I am too affected to do more than scan it...... it's waaay too depressing to me, and nothing I can do.

However, one thing I saw in that was about some fancy balancing of figures that sounded very much like the unemployment figures.... if you don't count those who have used up their unemployment so no longer receive it, then the unemployment figures look so much better.

Same/same with Section 8...... if you don't count those who can't get it, then the demand is not nearly so great.

Devilishly devious, these repukes!

Too bad the damned DEMs can't get as clever in saving the resources for poor folk!

Kanary

[salvorhardin]

13. So damn two-faced

Repukes: "Oh, but it'll encourage HUD to reduce costs. If they just reduced costs, they wouldn't even need the money we're cutting.

Wrong. The 1.6 BILLION dollar cut far exceeds the entire administrative funding of HUD.

Not only that, but this proposal will make it incredibly hard for families and individuals receiving Section 8 housing subsidies to move to other locations, effectively trapping them, assuming they haven't been thrown out on the streets.

[Kanary]

14. Oh, they're reducing costs alright......

Hell, kill off all us poor folk, and cut it right down to the bone......

Yup, just what their Jesus preached, right?

Since I'm one of those likely to be cut, it isn't something I can deal with.

Kanary

[union_maid]

8. Section 8 is part of the equation

And it's already been drastically cut this year, here. Some towns have closed it up altogether. Here's one article about it:
http://www.motherjones.com/news/dailymojo/2004/05/05_520.html

[Kanary]

12. Unfortunately, got "file not found"

sigh......

[union_maid]

4. Much worse than the median here

People with much higher paying jobs than janitors and sales clerks are being priced out of the housing market and that's with two jobs in a family. I don't know what the median price for an apartment here is, but it's very difficult to find a two bedroom for less than around $1500 and a $300K is a low, low price if you want to buy a house. Wages, however, are much closer to those outlined in the article.

[southernleftylady]

10. Thanks for the links everyone :) n/t

[Big Kahuna]

15. I have been frustrated by this issue for a long time.

Rents have been skyrocketing for the past 5 or 6 years. In my area people have gone from paying $450 for a 2br apartment, to $700-$800 in the matter of a few years. The average pay in the area has not changed since the late 80's.

Capitalism's answer is that people get motivated and find ways to cope. This much is true. It forces people to neglect their children because they have to work so many hours, blow off bills because they can't pay them, drop their health insurance because they can't afford the $50-$100 a week, write rubber checks to by groceries, and other unsustainable practices. I know. That's I've been living for the past few months, and trying to keep my family from falling apart.

Housing is an issue that no politician on either side of the aisle will touch with a 10 foot pole. Real-estate always has to go up-up-up and is like a god-given birthright that none may interfere with, even if it is causing more and more families to move around chasing jobs like migrant farm workers or go homeless.

Anyway, it has been my experience that most voters on either side have never been there, and don't give a shit, so I'll leave you on that note.

[Sugarbleus]

16. Whippee! I find another human interest topic...

Hey ya'll:

Section 8 is taking it in the shorts. I remember Bush stating that he was going to cut this program...reasons unknown to me. And sure enough, in our community at least, the axe IS falling. Our family just got a shaky wake up call but I think we have it covered. We are two low income people one totally disabled the other partially disabled. We are crammed into a tiny, old, dirty dump that is completely inaccessible. The full rent is $1895. Our portion is considerably smaller...so far.

I've been listening to local liberal radio where callers ring in from other counties stating they are being forced out and talk about the panic!! The cuts are almost across the board, with exceptions for the most extreme cases.

Additionally, there was an article I just happened to find in my local paper yesterday about a fair housing group suing our city counsel for not living up to thier end of the bargin in terms of spending funds on building more affordable housing units...thats low income for sale and low income for rent.

While the war in Iraq was/is abominable, murderous, expensive, illegal, and should get Bush kicked out.... we also have a dirty little ground war going on here in America. It's called Poverty. It's like a hampster's wheel, no matter what you do, you can never "get there". Cost of living goes up faster than wages, jobs go overseas, etc etc. People get ill, lose a job,lose their savings, heartbreaking family troubles and *poof*, you're out of the "race".

We have people in Appalacia living in shacks going shoeless, we have inner city people who have NOTHING to look forward to and everything to be depressed about. Poor People in Iraq live in mud dwellings, many people in America live in the mud. They live in buses, cars, hotel rooms, under bridges. Some are "lucky" to live in a family member's basement, other's live in the woods. They get raped, killed, jailed even in shelters. There are disabled persons and vets on the verge of homelessness and many who are already there. There are whole working families out of a home. There are others who live in camp style arrangments but some are with no elec. or water or toilet facilities. Others who cram multiple families/persons into single family dwellings. THIS IS WAR PEOPLE. It's right here...not in some foreign land!

At the rate the corporate trend is going: "Every man for himself", even the middle class needs to worry.

My staunch republican brother in law worked very hard all of his life. He is a fundie christian too. He bought a home for his family years ago--still paying it off. He is straight as an arrow, honest to a fault. 10 years ago he got laid off of the job he held for 20 years and his back was injured. He scrounged around for another job but he had this little problem: he couldn't read so well PLUS he had that back injury that he didn't want to tell anyone about but they found out about later anyway--oh, he was also over 50 =o/ He took a job fixing bicycles in Walmart, then they made him greeter at the door because of his back. Then he took another job fixing something for minimum wage...his wife developed full blown diabetes. Eventually both her legs were amputated. She needed constant care AND a wheelchair. Brother in law was beside himself and starting to unravel. His church couldn't help but only a little because they were a "poor" church.

He finally humbles himself (anti charity mind you) and goes to the "Welfare" office to ask for help. Guess what, they gave him the royal runaround. After two years of trying to keep a job to pay his mortgage AND take care of his wife, he finally got some help for her and a wheelchair.
He said to me: 'He couldn't believe what the system put him through'. He was embarrassed and humiliated. He felt like he'd paid into the system all his life and having to beg for help and reveal all sorts of sordid details and fill out hundreds of miles of forms was just shocking to him. He and his wife are on the verge of homelessness and he is on the verge of a nervous breakdown.

So always think about the other guys problems like they were your own because one day they could be--vote for his interests too, be his voice when he can't speak for himself........................Peace