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Foreclosures rising again, renters screwed!
8:33AM ON
04/08/2008
BY
funkEpunkEmonkE
I’ve been apartment searching for the past 2 years, trying to find a nicer apartment in a better area for less money. My situation isn’t bad. I have a charming 2 br near a golf course for only $600 a month. The problem is the stench - that and the traffic. Oh, and the newly finished bike path that connects my neighborhood to the Hartford Ave projects is a problem (and I know it’s a problem b/c they stole our moped).
So, the price is right; the size is right; but the location stinks. Last night, I went to look at what sounded like a perfect apartment over the phone. I totally would have been cool paying the $1125 a month to live on Tenth Street in Prov. too. It has all the amenities I’m lacking - dishwasher, free laundry (which I easily spend $150 a month on), hardwoods, first floor, etc. Sounds great, right?
Well, I go to see this apartment and walk into a hug dining room. Great! I walk through into a large living room. Perfect! Then, I think, did I miss the kitchen? Oh, it’s a galley - at least there’s more storage than I have now, but where’s the bathroom? Come to find out, bathroom is between the bedrooms. I can deal; we don’t have people over often.The bedrooms are the problem. They’re barely big enough to fit a bed in - let alone myself, my hubby, my 2 yr old, and a baby on the way.
$1125 for this? I’d been looking at communities with club houses for little more than this. I’d give the guy his price if the utilities are included. If not, there’s no way I’d pay more than $900. Herein lies the problem.
State budget cuts are slashing money from affordable housing programs. The people displaced from these programs are taking all the affordable housing outside the programs from the people that already need them.
The ratio between income and cost of living in this country has gotten out of control. We’ve even looked in other states, and the ratio is the same. People are making less and less while housing costs are rising.
According to national HUD reports, a 2 br in RI typically costs $1,030 a month. If you do the math, you’d have to make $20/hr to afford that. People in this state don’t make that unless you’re working jobs like we have. side note: This raises the question of where all our money goes - oh, right, food and gas (both automobile and heating).
So, let’s assume our budget for housing is $1200 a month - Anyone out there have a LARGE 2 BR with a dishwasher and free laundry on the East Side for that? I’ve been looking for 2 years and haven’t found it.
April 8th, 2008 at 10:56AM
raininri Says:
I hear you. We just moved and took on a roommate in order to escape our last situation and be able to afford something halfway decent (pretty close to where you looked). It’s not really worth the price, but not much is.
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