October 21, 2009 in City

Report says cost of living higher in state’s poor neighborhoods

Transportation, housing, food options all factors

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Dan Pelle photo

Cristy Guy, a single mother of two, gathers herself as she tells her story. She spoke during a presentation Tuesday at Salem Lutheran Church.
(Full-size photo)

Poor people may feel like they never get a break, but it’s worse than that, according to a study of low-income families in Washington. They are getting gouged.

The report prepared by the Statewide Poverty Action Network and VOICES of Spokane details how the poor pay more for goods and services than higher-income residents.

From a loaf of bread to a home mortgage, the poor pay higher prices, not just in terms of percent of income, but in real dollars, according to the report, “The High Cost of Being Poor in Washington State.”

The findings were released Tuesday at a gathering of about 75 advocates for the poor at Salem Lutheran Church in the 3rd Legislative District, which has the lowest per capita income in the state, according to its representative, Tim Ormsby, who spoke at the gathering.

Ormsby tied poverty to an unremitting cycle of “anxiety, despair and violence.”

Also addressing the crowd was Cristy Guy, a single mother of two who is struggling to escape poverty.

“Instead of paying for more places to lock people up, we need to start paying to help them get them on their feet,” Guy said.

The state study, patterned after national research by the Brookings Institution, revealed price disparities in four key areas of daily life:

•Food, particularly fresh produce, is more expensive and of worse quality in poor neighborhoods than in wealthier ones.

•Transportation issues are often an obstacle to escaping poverty, and the poor pay more for vehicles and insurance premiums. Public transportation often is not an option, particularly for people working irregular hours.

•Housing not only costs the poor a higher percentage of their income, but home mortgage terms, including interest rates and fees, often are higher in lower-income neighborhoods.

•Financial services are fewer in low-income neighborhoods, and the poor often have to rely on payday loan institutions that trap them in cycles of high-cost debt.

The report makes several recommendations to alleviate the disproportionate cost burden for the poor, including:

•Granting tax incentives to grocery stores willing to open in poor neighborhoods.

•Community programs that promote competitive pricing and reasonable financing for automobiles.

•Elimination of predatory home-mortgage lending through community negotiations with lenders.

•Expansion of community-based credit unions and consumer protection laws that cap interest rates charged by payday lenders.

In a discussion following presentation of the report, a nurse who visits low-income families in their homes said often the cycle of poverty is more about ZIP codes than personal choices.

“Where you live matters,” Kathy Bernier said. “A person who lives in a million-dollar home has planned to live there, but a person on (Temporary Assistance to Needy Families) does not get to choose where he lives.”

14 comments on this story so far. Add yours!

• 

  liarsinnews on October 21 at 5:25 a.m.

  Unless a person is extremely rich, who really gets to live where one would rather own a home?

• 

  philipgregory on October 21 at 1:54 p.m.

  SR not be witholding this story from the poor (non-paid readers)

• 

  Spokanechick73 on October 21 at 4:56 p.m.

  I exist at barely above the poverty level that would allow me to qualify for benefits from the State - I struggle to pay my bills and am lucky if I “break even” every month. I disagree with 99% of the information in this article - where was this “study” or “poll” taken? Forced to use payday loan services? You have got to be kidding me - that’s like saying one is forced to buy beer because milk is so expensive these days………. give me a break. Auto insurance premiums are higher for some drivers for a reason - take a look at people driving on a suspended license or those who have tons of tickets - is there a correlation there? Yeah, there is. Low-income people may not be able to pay for their tickets as quickly as a rich person could - soooooo… lets not drive and get tickets if we can’t afford the consequences OK? A rich person with a ton of tickets pays a sky high insurance rate for their brand-new SUV - there is no “rich” insurance break if you are a high risk driver. In fact, those “rich” drivers have to pay a huge premium to cover all of the low-income uninsured drivers who get in accidents and don’t pay for the damages. The grocery store scenario - don’t even get me started - there are so many things wrong with that picture it doesn’t even come close to valid. Yes, I’m “poor” - but that doesn’t make me a victim. Allowing myself to believe that the “system” is against me so I can make excuses for my situation is the worst thing I could succumb to. There are tons of people who really do need the help and they should get it - but the number who pin the “victim” label to their chest and stick their hands out is WAY out of control - its just wrong.

• 

  elcee1987 on October 21 at 6:39 p.m.

  Spokanechick’s comments make sense except for the insurance one. There’s plenty of scenarios where people HAVE to drive, especially lower-income people who may have to work overnight or live in a rural area, like I do. Getting a $200 speeding ticket for trying to make it on time to work is a MAJOR setback for someone who makes $400 a month and it’s all dumped into rent, because we can’t find another job in Spokane or get more hours at our current job. I’m not saying police should stop handing out tickets, but I wish there were a way we could work off our tickets, instead of just monetary compensation to the state. Frankly, 50 hours of community service doing janitorial work or roadside cleanup at $4 an hour applied toward my ticket would be a better deal for the state than collecting my $200 then paying $367 a month in food stamps and another couple hundred on my utilities because I missed making the payment because I can’t afford food or heat after paying $200.

• 

  CheckingItOut on October 21 at 7:29 p.m.

  I regularly see people using their food stamps at convenience stores, where they ALWAYS pay more for bread, milk, and other food items. People using food stamps for such non-essentials as soda. Perhaps if they learned to spend more wisely, they wouldn’t feel quite the pinch.

  And that they can get cash back and go buy cigarettes is just plain stupid!

• 

  garfnagn on October 21 at 8:21 p.m.

  Because poor people shouldn’t get to use convenience stores like rich people. They shouldn’t be able to run down to the Zip Trip to get some milk because it’s close and all mom’s got in the house for her kids right now is cold cereal. Only rich folks get convenience stores. God, these attitudes. Unreal.

• 

  Daniel on October 22 at 12:11 a.m.

  Does the information in this article actually surprise the general population?

  The 12th paragraph about the payday loan institutions is editorializing. This shouldn’t have been included in the article.

  Low income neighborhoods carry higher interest rates for a reason. There is a business on the other side that is taking an elevated risk with those of us who earn a living near the poverty line; we’re the borrowers here. Owning a home is a luxury, not a right. I am renting an apartment; I shouldn’t have an automatic right to a home unless I can afford it.

  Grocery stores in low income neighborhoods usually have less than adequate produce because the stock isn’t moved as quickly as grocery stores in wealthier neighborhoods. Once again, the business tries to extend the amount of time a product sits on the shelf for obvious reasons.

  Both sides of the argument focuses on money. Don’t blame the other side for your ignorant decisions. Only you are responsible for your fate.

• 

  fbhkymom on October 22 at 7:11 a.m.

  My question is: why do low-income people, who spend hundreds of dollars a month on cigarettes, get in line for turkey drives, free school supplies, and the food bank? It makes me furious to see these people standing in these lines and smoking.

• 

  tinberry on October 22 at 7:18 a.m.

  Poor in America is not poor. Unless you really witness true poverty in other countires you have no idea what poverty is.

• 

  Megan_B on October 22 at 12:01 p.m.

  It’s amazing how so many find it so easy to lash out at the poor for their problems being “their own fault.” And yes, they are, but the scenario is more complex than it appears on the surface. If you grow up in a poor neighborhood, with poor parents (or parent, as the case often is) you are going to go to the same public school with all of the other poor kids in your poor neighborhood. Often these single parents have to work more often for a lower wage, dedicating less time to their children and enhancing their education with at-home help. Also, these parents are less educated because they couldn’t afford higher education when they were students, and therefore cannot assist their children with schoolwork as easily. These children are going to be influenced to pick up the same habits, such as smoking, because everyone they grow up around is doing it.

  Instead of accusing these people of not taking responsibility for their own actions, how about putting more effort towards educating them on what the right actions are? Let provide children with free after-school programs where they can get the help with their studies and social skills that they can’t get at home. Let’s offer free drug / cigarette / alcohol counseling to those who need it. Let’s advertise free financial lessons (which are regularly given out by credit unions, especially for first-time home buyers) so that people can determine more rationally if they can afford something, and also learn better methods to balancing their budgets.

  Finally, it’s so important that public transit is expanded. So many rely on it for daily transportation, especially those who cannot afford to buy or drive a car.

• 

  Spok on October 22 at 1:49 p.m.

  Better, more reliable public transit with expanded hours would go a long way towards solving these problems. We have the opportunity to elect two new city council seats, Amber Waldref and Jon Snyder, both of whom understand this issue and speak clearly to it.

• 

  Daniel on October 23 at 12:19 a.m.

  @Megan_B

  I understand your opinion,but must disagree. The so called victims lash out for help and deny the treatment when its offered.

  Yes, there are exceptions but a large number continue to milk the system. Why buy the milk when you can get it for free?

  The side of a cigarette package clearly defines the risk of smoking. If that warning isn’t enough to educate people about the side effects, then dedicating extra resources to those people would be moronic.

  Let’s waste some more of the city’s money!

  Is that what you’re saying?

• 

  CheckingItOut on October 23 at 9:29 p.m.

  And when they get lung or tongue or whatever cancer, it will be taxpayer money that provides for their medical needs too.

  Year before last, I saw someone using their Christmas Bureau check to purchase wine. There is something really wrong with that.

  No, I do not think people who are able to work (and so many are able to than actually do) should be wasting taxpayer money at convenience stores, on cigarettes or alcohol or anything that is not a basic necessity. When I WORKED my way through school, I budgeted carefully, went without many things. I was occasionally late with a bill, but eventually paid for everything. I would never screw creditors with bankruptcy or rely on public assistance.

  Shame on those with entitlement mentalities! Got to work. Budget for what you earn. If you don’t earn to buy what you want, do something about it.

• 

  Megan_B on October 27 at 11:47 a.m.

  I am certainly not saying that we spend any unnecessary tax payer money! I am talking about us working together as a community! I’m talking about lending a hand to your neighbors. Why must we assume that the government can fix everything? When I say we need more after-school activities I’m talking about business and community members opening up their doors to these kids with free tutoring lessons, theatre and sport activities, etc. There need to be cheap or FREE places that kids can go to for recreational activities so they don’t resort to drugs and alcohol for a good time.

  And as for the counseling, how about more churches opening their doors for A.A. meetings? How about more donations and fundraisers for awareness on under-age drinking problems? If we all could educate ourselves on the side-effects of marijuana on the developing brain maybe it would help our youth make better decisions.

  I’m not just talking about throwing more of the city’s money at the problem. I’m talking about a city coming together and getting INVOLVED.