3 ms·

The real question is how are they finding housing for less than $500 a month?

• fwip 2y ago
  They likely had either supplemental sources of income or additional assistance. E.g: If you have $500/month, you can afford to pay your buddy $200/month to crash on his couch. Now you have reliable access to a shower, an address to put on your resumes, a bit of cash to thrift a suit/dress clothes and a beater laptop, and it's way easier to get a job.
• bongodongobob 2y ago
  Like the person below said, it doesn't mean you found housing. It might mean you were able to buy a pre pay phone, gym membership, PO box, bus pass, decent pair of clothes, haircut, etc. Most of the jobs in the world don't rely on Zoom interviews and email. You'll get a phone call and have to physically go interview with someone. Really hard to hide looking and smelling like a mess in that scenario.
  • miki123211 2y ago
    Why would a gym membership be on anybody's priority list? is this a US thing?
    • walthamstow 2y ago
      It means somewhere to shower in the absence of a home.
    • andrewchambers 2y ago
      Very cheap 24 hour place to shower and use the bathroom.
    • throwaway7ahgb 2y ago
      There used to be stories on HN where kids in SV earning good jobs would stay "homeless" and shower at Google type offices or a gym. It's a thing.
    • red-iron-pine 2y ago
      * showers. many gyms often have soap as well. the Golds Gym I used to go to had that, albeit it mostly handsoap dispensers (with handsoap) in the showers. but it was enough in a crunch if I forgot my own body wash * lockers. most places claim "24 hours only" but aren't so great about that, and many will let you rent lockers for 24/7 storage for trivial money. * decent toilets, sinks, mirrors. it's hard to shower, shave, and shit in a gas station bathroom. * you can wash clothes. gyms with a pool often have drying equipment (like the little centrifuges for bathing suits). also saunas and blowdryers. like if you only have 3 pairs of undies, you can give 2 of em a good wash and spin them mostly dry, then hang em in a locker. * 24/7 access. hang out or workout at night, and then quietly grab a nap somewhere (mostly) secure. clean your gear, take a shower, get right, without a ton of people around. hit a couple of reps for arms and shoulders while you're at it. * most gyms I've been to often have powerbars or other cheap meal replacements / proteins in vending machines as well, which may be your only option if you're down to < $5 a day for food
• frustratedlazy 2y ago
  That's not crazy in Denver :). I saw a place which was 850$ a month (literally this month), and it was in a decent location, and relatively large. I totally believe you could find something small and cheap for 500.
  • bongodongobob 2y ago
    Yeah, it's crazy in Denver... wtf are you talking about? Avg is like 2k. Browse craigslist. Denver has been hot for years. I live in a 100k Midwest town and 500 is crazy here.
    • dsauerbrun 2y ago
      I'd imagine they mean a room in a house... or someone's basement in englewood that's in a dumpy spot.
    • Retric 2y ago
      Average says little about the minimums. At my first job one of my coworkers was splitting a cheap 2 bedroom apartment among 8 working adults. Hardly ideal, but it fit his goals.
    • ojbyrne 2y ago
      Maybe they know some of the other people who got money and they’re sharing an apt.
  • c22 2y ago
    When I was in college I had a pretty sweet house-sitting gig with a guy who was out of town for a lot of the year operating commercial research vessels. He paid me $250/month to watch the place while he was gone, take care of his dog, water the plants, etc. When he was in town I paid $250/mo to rent my room, but since most years he was gone for 5-8 months my net cost was <$0.
• jncfhnb 2y ago
  The $500 might have enabled finding a job