People in Bradenton living paycheck to paycheck and at risk of homelessness is up 16%

Almost anyone that you might see walking around the Bradenton area could be a few paychecks away from homelessness.

Angie Gore, 52, knows from personal experience.

“I will never forget that day last year when I came home and saw a big sign taped to our door that said ‘eviction notice,’” Gore said.

“I fell to my knees and cried like a baby! I prayed for God to help me through this. I knew I had to get up and find the strength and courage for my family,” she said.

There are many other Manatee County households facing similar struggles, according to United Way Suncoast’s newest ALICE Report — Asset Limited, Income Constrained, Employed households. It’s a broader way to look at the number of people struggling financially, beyond those who meet the Federal Poverty Level.

The number of Manatee households living below the ALICE threshold has risen 16% since 2019, from 57,768 households to 66,818.

In total, 31% of households in Manatee County are below the ALICE threshold, and 10% are in poverty. In more rural counties like DeSoto, the ALICE number is as high as 65%.

One paycheck away from the streets

Gore, 52, the sole breadwinner for her family, had always been a good, reliable tenant who faithfully paid her rent and other bills.

Gore and her family moved out of one apartment after the landlord raised the rent from $1,350 to $2,200 a month.

Things were looking good in the new apartment before the bottom fell out.

“COVID-19 swept through our home. I missed three weeks of work. All I could think of was how am I gonna come up with the rent?” she said.

With the rising price of everything, Gore had been unable to save money for a rainy day.

Turning Points helped keep the family from going homeless. With $2,000 of assistance, the family was able to keep a roof over their heads.

“I was so relieved. Turning Points and this community really came through for us. I am so grateful for this help for my family. Thank you Turning Points,” Gore said.

The housing crisis

Requests for help have surged at Turning Points, which assists the homeless as well as ALICE families in the Bradenton area seeking to avoid homelessness.

“For us, it’s about the cost of rent. We saw a 29% increase in 2022 in requests for rent and utility assistance applications. We have some of the highest increases in rent in the country,” said Kathleen Cramer, executive director of Turning Points.

“Many of our clients have been good renters,” Cramer said, but rent increases are forcing them to look for new homes.

“We have grant money for housing, mostly from HUD, but the rent here goes above the fair market value that the grant allows,” Cramer said.

In the Bradenton area, 25% of families with children are classified as ALICE and 12% live in poverty.

For single and cohabiting adults in Manatee County, 30% were identified as ALICE and 11% were living in poverty.

More than a third of seniors — 35% — were in the ALICE group and 8% were living in poverty, according to United Way Suncoast.

For seniors on fixed incomes, being forces out of their home because of rising rents is heartbreaking, Cramer said.

Survival budget

In Manatee County, a household survival budget for a single adult working full-time in 2021 was $29,412. A survival budget of $72,252 was needed for a family of four, including two adults, an infant and a preschooler, the United Way Suncoast report said.

Those numbers exceeded the federal poverty level of $12,880 for a single adult and $26,500 for a family of four, according to the latest ALICE report.

In the Bradenton Census County Division, there were 105,621 households with 48% of those identified as ALICE or living in poverty.

A CCD is a subdivision of a county used by the United States Census Bureau to present statistical data. It’s an area delineated cooperatively by the Census Bureau and state and local government.

In the Palmetto CCD, there were 13,280 households and 51% of the population was identified as ALICE or living in poverty.

Those living in poverty or identified as ALICE in the Myakka City CCD and Parrish CCD were 25% and 24%, respectively.

Race and ethnicity

The Suncoast United Way report said that household financial health varied by race and ethnicity:

▪ Half of Black households were identified as ALICE and 14% were identified as living in poverty.

▪ Among Hispanic households, 42% were identified as ALICE and 10% were living in poverty.

▪ Among Asian households, 34% were identified as ALICE and 11% were living in poverty.

▪ Among white households, 32% were identified as ALICE and 7% were living in poverty.

After the pandemic

The COVID-19 pandemic had a major impact on household finances.

During the pandemic, Florida saw a large migration into the state along with increasing cost of living.

The pandemic set off a home buying spree that raised home prices to record levels, and put even more pressure on struggling households.

In April, the Bradenton market set a record for existing single family houses with a median of $570,000.

The ranks of Florida households unable to afford the basics grew by more than 227,000 during the first two years of the COVID-19 pandemic, resulting in a total of 3,866,606 households or 45% struggling to afford the basics by 2021, United Way Suncoast said.

Florida’s consistent increase in the number of ALICE households dates back to the Great Recession of 2008.

In the wake of the pandemic, the Suncoast region saw an additional 28,000 ALICE households struggling to make ends meet. Today, over two in five households in the Suncoast region are ALICE.

“It could have been so much worse for these families, whose struggle to feed their families, afford health care and access quality education was often hidden in plain sight until the pandemic,” Jessica Muroff, United Way Suncoast CEO, said in a press release.

Tax credits, stimulus payments and rental assistance were available for ALICE households and provided strong relief during the pandemic, said Stephanie Hoopes, United For ALICE National Director.

“However, as some of these supports come to an end, growing food insufficiency and other indicators reveal continued stress. Ignoring these warning signs places ALICE, our economy and the well-being of our communities at great risk,” Hoopes said.

For more information about the ALICE report visit http://www.unitedforalice.org/florida.

Reaction to the crisis

The Bradenton area housing crisis has been coming more to the forefront in government and business offices in recent years.

At a Manatee Chamber of Commerce discussion earlier this month, panelists discussed having having the corporate world chip in to provide housing for their workers, local government providing property tax exemptions for workforce housing and a community finding shelter for the homeless.

The Stronger Together Reaching Equality Across Manatee (STREAM) group says affordable housing remains its top priority in Manatee County.

Earlier this month, STREAM wants Manatee County Commissioners to “support policies and practices to ensure that the county creates at least 1,000 new units of affordable housing” in the next fiscal year.

At that meeting, Commissioner George Kruse announced his support of a plan that would ensure 1,000 more housing units within the next year. STREAM estimates that the county is short 11,000 affordable housing units.

In March, Lincoln Avenue Capital broke ground on the largest affordable housing development in Manatee County at at 4498 12th St. Ct. E. in Oneco.

The project includes The Savoy at 301, providing 324 units of affordable housing for families and individuals, and The 301 Flats, providing 248 units for seniors. Altogether, 572 units of multi-family affordable housing are planned.