The Need is Now. The Time is Now.
The statistics of The Disenfranchised In Atlanta paint a startling picture of the true state of our neighborhoods.
- The fastest growing group of homeless people is children under 9 years of age.
- 40% of homeless men are veterans.
- Atlanta is the poorest city in the U.S. for children – more children in Atlanta live in poverty than in any other city.
- 48% of all the children in Atlanta in poverty live in families with annual incomes of less than $15,000 a year.
- For children under age 6 living in female-headed families with no spouse present, the poverty rate is 58.8%.
- Children ages 6-17 living in female-headed families with no spouse present have a poverty rate of 44.9%.
- Current welfare (TANF) benefits are $282 a month for a woman with two children. Could you find an apartment to rent on $282 a month?
- Fewer than 20% of those women and children living on welfare get any kind of housing subsidy.
- 98 million children in the U.S. have no health insurance. Eight million of those children without health insurance live in working families.
- Did you know that 40% – 60% of homeless people work?
Minimum wage in Georgia is $5.85 per hour, which yields $12,168 per year, before taxes. - HUD says you should pay no more than 30% of your income for your housing. (30% of minimum wage yields $270/mo. for rent)
- The average two-bedroom apartment in Atlanta rents for $834/mo. (which is 30% of an annual income of $33,360 or hourly rate of $16+ per hour). Thus, you need to earn $16+ per hour to afford that apartment, according to HUD.
- 46% of the jobs with the most growth between 1994 and 2005 pay less than $16,000 a year.
selections above from “Statistics and Mythbusters”, The Metro Atlanta Task Force For The Homeless ©2007
This entry was posted in Programs+Initiatives. Bookmark the permalink