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You clearly didn't know anything about the system.
Manhattan has lots of subsidized housing.
Manhattan has a number of housing projects, even below 96th Street (LES, Chelsea, Upper East Side, Upper West Side, Chinatown,Downtown). On top of the housing projects, there's other low income/subsidized housing like 80/20s, 70/30s, LAMPS, Section 8, and various housing programs paid by HRA.
Minimum wage people get subsidized health insurance.
WithDisp is correct, low income people are incredibly subsidized by the government here. On a long term basis either you go out for a professional career here or if you are going to be low income you'll need lots of government subsidies. Having lots of roommates long term is done by immigrants and by newcomers who have no money and who don't know the city.
A low-income person can wait years to get into subsidized housing.
And please don't tell me I know "nothing about the system" when I lived it in my time of need. There was no help at all available to me in the year and a half that I was unemployed and then underemployed because a part-time job was better than no job. I was living by myself in NYC on under $400 a week, minus taxes, and needless to say, had no heat all winter because I couldn't afford it. I was turned down for every single assistance program, even though it was only a short-term need.
You're only "subsidized" if you are disabled, elderly, or have children. No single person or even family making $30-$40k a year, which is who the OP is talking about, will get public assistance. Even at minimum wage, you'd have to have kids to get assistance. Go look at the income guidelines for assistance. I don't think they've changed since 1980.
You're talking from the perspective of what you've heard or read, and what you believe to be logically true. I'm talking from experience. There's a difference
Last edited by MissTrish; 02-19-2015 at 10:55 AM..
I'm assuming most of these people have no car and live in the hood? How do you make it on such low wage in NYC?
If by "hood" you mean a really bad, unsafe neighborhood, this wouldn't necessarily be the case. As another poster mentioned, there are plenty of neighborhoods on the outskirts of the outer boroughs that are not expensive (at least as far as NYC standards) and are not bad neighborhoods, just cheap(er). An area that is poorly served by subways and is rather far out into an outer borough is probably going to cost approximately the same amount as a "hood" area that has a subway. I think.
In any case, if you look at Google maps of all of the outer boroughs, you will find areas that have no subways and SOME of these areas are quite cheap. Not all are cheap -- some areas like Jamaica Estates in Queens is full of gorgeous and expensive houses.
Some areas that I could think of in Queens that are cheap and kind of far out there, but ok places to live, are Springfield Gardens, Queens Village, Rosedale.
I was thinking about the type of expense you are talking about. If you are talking about eating out all the time and buying all sorts of expensive item, yes, you probably might not be able to live in NYC. However, if you watch the money on what you spend on, you might be able to live with the 30-40k in NYC. Housing is expensive in Manhattan area, but not in the other four borough, yes some other borough might still be a little more, but you can still find relatively cheap rent as long as you are willing to share the apartment or rooms with others.
Some family have enough member to do different task to survive in NYC. One might be doing labor work on a daily basis, and the other one might be unemployed and collecting food stamp and be living in the project or the homeless shelter, and maybe the kids are doing some kind of job in a store that's paying them in cash, and those money are not reported.
Really it boils down to how much money you show as income on your tax return and how you spend your money wisely.
A low-income person can wait years to get into subsidized housing.
And please don't tell me I know "nothing about the system" when I lived it in my time of need. There was no help at all available to me in the year and a half that I was unemployed and then underemployed because a part-time job was better than no job. I was living by myself in NYC on under $400 a week, minus taxes, and needless to say, had no heat all winter because I couldn't afford it. I was turned down for every single assistance program, even though it was only a short-term need.
You're only "subsidized" if you are disabled, elderly, or have children. No single person or even family making $30-$40k a year, which is who the OP is talking about, will get public assistance. Even at minimum wage, you'd have to have kids to get assistance. Go look at the income guidelines for assistance. I don't think they've changed since 1980.
You're talking from the perspective of what you've heard or read, and what you believe to be logically true. I'm talking from experience. There's a difference
Your experience is not the experience, Miss Trish. My aunt was a caseworker for HASA. If someone has HIV, they get immediate food stamps, rental assistance, and about $380 a month in cash along with medicaid. And you do not have to be disabled for this beyond being HIV positive.
As for my own experience, let's just say I've worked at non profits and I've directed people where to go to various program help when they needed it.
Oh, but there are other HRA programs, and some of them offer rental assistance as well and you don't necessarily have to be disabled. You can get food stamps if you show sufficient hardship. If you are willing to undergo job training and/or wait around HRA centers to be assigned for workfare, you can get cash public assistance. And yes, you can get medicaid if your part time job pays less than $800 a month or so. Without being elderly or disabled or having children.
This is not counting Section 8, NYCHA, rent stabilized apartments, 80/20s, 70/30s, or Mitchell Lamas. Not counting SROs, Halfway houses, and other forms of shelters people stay in until they get in in whatever type of program housing they are looking for. All of this is heavily subsidized.
So what if it takes a low income person years to get some of these deals? You seriously think that is going to keep them from finding ways to get government benefits?
You were on UNEMPLOYMENT, and yes, a person on UNEMPLOYMENT is not going to qualify for most social services needs. UNEMPLOYMENT is considered a SHORT TERM situation.
Those who are permanently low income because they work minimum wage jobs, are unemployable for some reason, or who have medical or psychological issues (doctor verified) will have MUCH easier times in getting welfare benefits. They will even have plenty of friends who can advise them on how they did it.
I was born in NYC darling and I know the hood pretty well. You perhaps didn't know what you were doing when you applied for help.
I was thinking about the type of expense you are talking about. If you are talking about eating out all the time and buying all sorts of expensive item, yes, you probably might not be able to live in NYC. However, if you watch the money on what you spend on, you might be able to live with the 30-40k in NYC. Housing is expensive in Manhattan area, but not in the other four borough, yes some other borough might still be a little more, but you can still find relatively cheap rent as long as you are willing to share the apartment or rooms with others.
Some family have enough member to do different task to survive in NYC. One might be doing labor work on a daily basis, and the other one might be unemployed and collecting food stamp and be living in the project or the homeless shelter, and maybe the kids are doing some kind of job in a store that's paying them in cash, and those money are not reported.
Really it boils down to how much money you show as income on your tax return and how you spend your money wisely.
Housing is not CHEAP even in the Bronx. A studio in the North Bronx will cost you a minimum of 1k a month.
Brooklyn and Queens are pretty expensive unless you want to move into the hood areas (which aren't that cheap either).
Many of the people making 30k-40k, if they are not in rent stabilized or some other sort of affordable housing/subsidized housing are living with family or roommates.
A low-income person can wait years to get into subsidized housing.
And please don't tell me I know "nothing about the system" when I lived it in my time of need. There was no help at all available to me in the year and a half that I was unemployed and then underemployed because a part-time job was better than no job. I was living by myself in NYC on under $400 a week, minus taxes, and needless to say, had no heat all winter because I couldn't afford it. I was turned down for every single assistance program, even though it was only a short-term need.
You're only "subsidized" if you are disabled, elderly, or have children. No single person or even family making $30-$40k a year, which is who the OP is talking about, will get public assistance. Even at minimum wage, you'd have to have kids to get assistance. Go look at the income guidelines for assistance. I don't think they've changed since 1980.
You're talking from the perspective of what you've heard or read, and what you believe to be logically true. I'm talking from experience. There's a difference
You clearly don't know the city.
Are you even from NYC? Have you ever lived here before?
No matter what side of the political spectrum someone is on, there is no denying a significant number of people in this city are on some form of government subsidy.
The average person will use social services at some point.
And everyone does post 65. They are called social security and medicare.
How about you worry about what you will do. I think you have
made more than enough comments for this thread, by the way,
because you are really rappin'.
How about you worry about what you will do. I think you have
made more than enough comments for this thread, by the way,
because you are really rappin'.
No, I am telling the truth and if you take offense that's entirely on you.
Rents in poor NYC neighborhoods are not cheap and you will not pay them with a minimum wage job. Many minimum wage people have housing subsidies of some sort and that is a FACT!
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