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From a strictly economic perspective, they have few options presented to them and few choices to make. In blue states or major cities, many can subsist off the social safety net in its various forms and private charity.
For those who don't have addictions or mental illnesses, it's very tough. A friend of mine from high school held low skill jobs after high school. By her late 20s, she went back to community college while living at home, then moved to a major city to pursue an acting degree. She was off and on homeless (living out of a car) while going to school and working at a retail store.
She did end up completing the degree and getting a job as a flight attendant, and has an apartment in Houston now. She made a lot of what most folks would call poor decisions, but has always enjoyed living a somewhat off-beat lifestyle.
Homeless people never have to make decisions? How about should I sleep here, or over there, or by that tree, etc., etc. or will someone come over and attack me or steal from me, or touch me, or more succinctly I need to find the safest place possible just to get some rest tonight. Sounds like frequent decisions, nothing is on auto-pilot. Looks like an exhausting life to me.
One person who posted his account on being homeless mentioned he needs to scout a location first before he occupies or sleeps in it. You may need to deal with the owner, or other squatters.
Women need to find a place to remain hidden. It's usually too dangerous for them to sleep at night, so they sleep in the morning when it's safer.
I am probably way off, but I think it would seem like a decent interesting life. I've kind of always had a fantasy of dropping everything and living in the mountains or wilderness for months. Being homeless is similar.
That's what we did, back in the 90s. My ex and I horse-camped in the Sierras for 5 years, living in a tent and moving from pasture/water to the next good spot for the horses. It was so fascinating and enlightening. He hunted and I gathered wild food. We restocked at the small outpost stores along the Pacific Crest Trail.
He did handyman jobs for people we met and often stayed with.
It can be a choice and was really fun for those years. I wouldn't do it NOW, though. Far as I know, he still is.
He even went down Sunset Blvd. with his pack string and got front page in the L.A. Times.
Like the van people, there are other kinds of homeless folks.
I heard this line of thinking from my friend and I don't know what you think about it. He said to me that it's probably hard for the average person to ever end up as a millionaire/billionaire/athlete/renonwed scientist seeing as there are so few of them that there are the exception rather than the rule. One has to put in effort unless born into it.
The younger you are the easier it is to become a Millionaire. You need time to get there. The easiest way to become a millionaire is to start when you are a teenager and invest $2,000 a year for a 7 to 10 year period, into the stock market. You can get an IRA for this, and now the rules allow a teenager to invest with money that they earn from any job.
It is also something that the average person can do over a working lifetime. In fact if you fail to start when you are under 20 years of age, you can start later in life. I did not get serious with saving for retirement until in was 32 years old. When I say saving, I do not mean saving money in a bank or under your mattress. You need to put the money to work in the market. The easiest way to do it is with a 401K or a 403B retirement account. Most employers offer a match up to some point. For example my wife and I both invest 15% of our income and our employer invests and additional 5% into our account. We have a 403B retirement account and our money is in large cap stocks.
One study did mention that to be a true Millionaire that you need to have at least $1 million in invest able assets, not counting your primary residence or an employer sponsored retirement account. The jury is still out on 401K accounts, since the employee is required to invest their own money. Maybe someone will chime in on that.
On top of that, and if it is your goal to become a true millionaire under any definition of the word, then I would read up on Millionaires. a book you may be interested in "The Millionaire Next Door" and other similar books can give you ideas on what it takes to reach that status. One thing that seems to be common is to own your own business. Many people have started them with little of nothing and built them into a Million dollar business. Others work more than a single job and invest the proceeds into assets or other investments that will make them money.
It is all up to you if you choose to work towards becoming a Millionaire.
The younger you are the easier it is to become a Millionaire. You need time to get there. The easiest way to become a millionaire is to start when you are a teenager and invest $2,000 a year for a 7 to 10 year period, into the stock market. You can get an IRA for this, and now the rules allow a teenager to invest with money that they earn from any job.
I’d recommend a teen first invest in a solid education (even if it means going into debt to do it).
Drug addiction is a choice. There is no rule that the consequences of bad decisions must be easy, livable, or even recoverable.
There was the opioid crisis. Doctors were practically giving them out like candy. The manufacturers of them of course had no reason to speak up and cut into their _own_ profits. You have people who suffer injuries (including veterans) who do get hooked on the stuff. Financial and other circumstances need to be considered on a case-by-case basis.
I’d recommend a teen first invest in a solid education (even if it means going into debt to do it).
Investing a couple thousand a year in the market is not much these days.
For school, I would recommend that only if they have a plan. Going to school just to get a Sociology degree does not sound like a solid plan. Going to school just because everyone else is going to school doesn't sound like a great plan either. We have a training program at work. Start as an assistant Maintenance Tech and learn the facility. After a couple years apply to become a Building Engineer I. Over time move from BE I to Building Engineer V.
The education that you get has to have a way to pay off the debt that you incur. Many degrees today don't offer a payback for the investment.
On the other hand plenty of trades where you can get paid to learn the trade and make a nice income when you are proficient.
I’d recommend a teen first invest in a solid education (even if it means going into debt to do it).
Education in something. It doesn't have to be a college degree. It can be training at a trade school.
And education debt can be controlled and limited with some careful planning and not living like everything you want to live with is free free free. That all has to be paid for later, so be thrifty and not have to pay back as much.
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