Today on “Post Reports,” how the rising cost of living is pushing many Americans into homelessness, even if they have good jobs.
Read more:
The sheriffs arrived at 6 a.m. in early June to tell Josanne English what she already knew: She was being evicted.
She’d lost her job as a project manager near Sacramento in April, then fell behind on rent as $6-a-gallon gas and higher costs for food and utilities depleted her monthly budget. By the time she lost her home two months later, she owed $9,160 in rent and late fees, and her bank account was nearing zero.
English never thought she would be in this situation. She made nearly $100,000 last year. But, economics correspondent Abha Bhattarai says, she’s not alone.
“What's been striking this time around, just in conversations with families and also with homeless shelters and service providers, is that the people who are losing their homes now often have jobs. Sometimes they're even really good-paying jobs. But, you know, maybe their lease comes up for renewal. It's going up by 20 percent or 30 percent and they just can't afford that.”