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Question, I hear things like that on lemmy often. Is there some data source that I can point to if I want to repeat it. I work in tech and honestly don't go out much. I also have kids and live in an old neighborhood that is right next to new expensive ones. So I don't really know anyone personally that is living paycheck to paycheck. And no one would believe me if I talked about it without data and a source.
When you figure the basics, the math tracks.
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$7.50/hr is $60/day is $1200/mo, before taxes are taken out. So $1200 is by no means take home pay. Where do you imagine rent or a mortgage acquired today tracks at 50% of that? Then there’s all the things you need to work: clothes, transportation, electricity and running water, a phone, soaps, shoes, food to fuel you for that job.
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$15/hr is $120/day is $2400/mo before taxes. Maybe in the Midwest or the crappier parts of the south you can live solo. Again though, you’re looking at beans and rice. Maybe some leg meat chicken and eggs if you think you can splurge that week.
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Bank of America released this, this month: https://institute.bankofamerica.com/economic-insights/paycheck-to-paycheck-lower-income-households.html
Their estimate is 1/4 of families live paycheck to paycheck. It reaches as high as $150k/yr. The $150k is probably someone with a mortgage. Cost of DIY materials, tools, and any tradesman work has doubled and on some cases tripled. Example: I put a storm door in a house for $250, with installation, in 2019. In 2021 that same door without installation, me figuring it out, is $350 off the shelf. You used to be able to get a tradesman out and actually be billed $350, $400, $250, and so on. Now, your licensed tradesmen often have $1k a day minimums just to show up. Home ownership can now break you instead of save you. Home ownership is not what it was pre 2020.
What’s unique here is as a bank they can parse out necessity from want shopping.
There’s a lot on Google dates after 10/22/24 on paycheck to paycheck, but much of it appears to be scraping this document to write redundant articles.
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Forbes has this, written before the BoA article: https://www.forbes.com/advisor/banking/living-paycheck-to-paycheck-statistics-2024/
A lot of this is survey responses and savings capacity. So not unique.
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Here’s a winning essay from Ursinus College arguing for raising the minimum wage. Lots of citations, do your own research to chase down those citations: https://digitalcommons.ursinus.edu/ethics_essay/23/
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Mostly, just talk to people. Insurances are insane lately. That alone has added ~$950/mo to my necessities and I have a good driving record, not a single medical diagnosis, bundle discount, no kids on health insurance, and I haven’t claimed anything on the homeowners, ever, in 20 yrs. And yet.
Here how about something like this?
https://www.forbes.com/advisor/banking/living-paycheck-to-paycheck-statistics-2024/
Do you actually need a source for a lot of people being poor in a nation where the bottom half of the country earns 9% of the income and has near zero wealth?
It’s probably Elon trying to figure out how to do research on how he screwed up during his little e-town hall.
A relative this afternoon actually came over to my house this afternoon, burst into the living room to sit down and start going off on how they thought Elon was actually trolling trump and trying to lose the election for him.
Until I explained about the guy being born with a silver spoon shoved so far up his ass he probably has no idea what things on grocery store shelves, utility bills, or Walmart socks bought in bulk even cost. The relative thought Elon was self made. Ha! Daddy funded. He has no idea how we live.