The current situation of homelessness in the U.S. is rising, and it is known that one of the main causes of this is living costs, and the weight that it carries on one's shoulders. It doesn’t help when the wage isn’t increasing for minimum wage paying jobs either. If we keep things the way they are now, those who are of low socioeconomic status will keep losing their homes and the numbers will increase over time. It is true that there are programs to help the situation, however, only after someone has lost their home, and it is only a temporary solution that does not solve the issue at hand. According to the National Low-Income Housing Coalition, “New York State has the fourth-highest housing wage required: In order to afford a one-bedroom apartment at Fair Market Rent, a minimum-wage employee would have to work 98 hours every week”. The amount of hours one has to work to afford living is outrageous, in time these individuals will experience stress, burnout, and may even fall into health issues. We need to find a permanent solution that will stop and prevent people from getting into that situation in the first place. Currently, Coalition for the homeless offers programs that help with eviction prevention to save people from losing their homes and falling into homelessness.
The United States Interagency Council on Homelessness (USICH) has highlighted solutions that can do what it takes to end homelessness and prevention. These solutions include acting on: Housing, Integrating Health Care, Building Career Pathways, Fostering Education Connections, Strengthening Crisis Response systems, Reducing Criminal Justice Involvement, Building Partnerships and most importantly Preventing Homelesness. To learn more specifically how you can help or about how it works please visit their website: https://www.usich.gov/solutions/
- Elizabeth Tangkilisan
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