3 ms·

I was homeless for nearly six years. I hated it. It wasn't actually anything I wanted. Most people on the street don't want to be there. The research points to

I was homeless for nearly six years. I hated it. It wasn't actually anything I wanted. Most people on the street don't want to be there. The research points to housing as the primary root cause.

proc0 5y ago
I mean the housing IS there, just maybe not in the high demand areas. Is is that we need to have a bunch of excess housing so it lowers in price? I had a couple friends who were homeless in SF, and slowly got out of it. Places like SF are just limited in square footage, it's like an island basically, yet people are living on the streets there for decades... shouldn't they try a different city if they really didn't want to be on the streets? I mean years outside in the same city seems suspicious to me that it's really housing.
holler 5y ago
Directly next to where I live there are multiple people living in the hillside. Each day for the past year+ they park their BMW, Honda Accord, and Toyota Camry on our street, and then walk off into the park, hop a fence, and down to wherever it is their tents are. It's really perplexing to see someone driving a ~2010 clean BMW while choosing to live in the hillside. My determination is that they're simply choosing that lifestyle for whatever reason.
- DoreenMichele 5y ago
  A 2010 auto is likely paid off. The carrying costs are low. That doesn't mean they can afford rent. It just means they have some income, but probably not enough to support a middle class lifestyle.
- reillyse 5y ago
  Ah high percentage of people living homeless in Los Angeles, (in the region of 60% if I remember from the survey) have at least one job. They get paid money, just not enough money to rent somewhere. There is no "lifestyle" to choose.
- imtringued 5y ago
  You have a limited budget that isn't enough to pay rent. Do you choose paying the unaffordable rent or setting up the tent while maintaining your mobility?

I was homeless for nearly six years. I hated it. It wasn't actually anything I wanted. Most people on the street don't want to be there. The research points to housing as the primary root cause.

proc0 5y ago

I mean the housing IS there, just maybe not in the high demand areas. Is is that we need to have a bunch of excess housing so it lowers in price? I had a couple friends who were homeless in SF, and slowly got out of it. Places like SF are just limited in square footage, it's like an island basically, yet people are living on the streets there for decades... shouldn't they try a different city if they really didn't want to be on the streets? I mean years outside in the same city seems suspicious to me that it's really housing.

holler 5y ago

Directly next to where I live there are multiple people living in the hillside. Each day for the past year+ they park their BMW, Honda Accord, and Toyota Camry on our street, and then walk off into the park, hop a fence, and down to wherever it is their tents are. It's really perplexing to see someone driving a ~2010 clean BMW while choosing to live in the hillside. My determination is that they're simply choosing that lifestyle for whatever reason.

DoreenMichele 5y ago
A 2010 auto is likely paid off. The carrying costs are low. That doesn't mean they can afford rent. It just means they have some income, but probably not enough to support a middle class lifestyle.
reillyse 5y ago
Ah high percentage of people living homeless in Los Angeles, (in the region of 60% if I remember from the survey) have at least one job. They get paid money, just not enough money to rent somewhere. There is no "lifestyle" to choose.
imtringued 5y ago
You have a limited budget that isn't enough to pay rent. Do you choose paying the unaffordable rent or setting up the tent while maintaining your mobility?