5 ms·

The way I understood it was that, considering that they couldn't make rent on their unemployment income, the wages still wouldn't have been enough to keep them

The way I understood it was that, considering that they couldn't make rent on their unemployment income, the wages still wouldn't have been enough to keep them from having to give up the house.

edw519 17y ago
I'm trying to be sympathetic, but I'm having trouble getting the numbers to work. He picks up $700 per week in unemployment compensation. That's $3000 per month. How much is their rent? Have they considered making special arrangements with their landlord? I doubt if she has many other options (other tenants or a buyer). I really felt bad for this family until she turned the job down. In my mind, that changed everything.
- jlees 17y ago
  They're living so hand-to-mouth that she simply couldn't afford the immediate cash-in-hand loss of the job despite any future payoff. By the sounds of it, the landlord was pretty damn stretched, I doubt they could have negotiated. Maybe there's the option of replacement tenants downsizing for similar reasons, otherwise I feel a bit sorry for the poor landlord..
- paulbaumgart 17y ago
  Probably a little bit under a grand: http://southbend.craigslist.org/search/apa?query=middlebury&catAbbreviation=apa&minAsk=min&maxAsk=max&bedrooms=2 http://southbend.craigslist.org/search/apa?query=middlebury&... You're right it's probably doable on a strict budget, but kids are expensive, I've heard. Then again, so is beer and lotto tickets, but he might not be exaggerating when he says that's the last thing keeping him sane.
  - randallsquared 17y ago
    Then again, so is beer and lotto tickets, but he might not be exaggerating when he says that's the last thing keeping him sane. Indeed. There have been times when I spent my last $10 on chips, dip, and soda, just for the temporary mood boost.
- orangecat 17y ago
  I really felt bad for this family until she turned the job down. In my mind, that changed everything. That's understandable to me; she'd essentially be paying to work. That would both worsen their immediate cash situation and make it harder for her to search for a decent job. The real problem is the ridiculous incentives caused by unemployment payments that immediately go to zero once you have any source of income. The point where I lost sympathy was when the guy was making a good salary and was determined to spend every cent of it. If you're living paycheck to paycheck in the best of times, you are going to get screwed, it's just a question of when.
pavel_lishin 17y ago
Considering that the guy eats donuts and drinks jugs of Pepsi, I think that spending $40/week wouldn't kill them.
- swombat 17y ago
  Yeah, I was reading that, and the bit about having 8 beers every week after collecting his unemployment check, and the bit about buying 4 packs of cigarettes, and various other things, and thinking - wtf? No wonder you're broke. Get your priorities straight.

The way I understood it was that, considering that they couldn't make rent on their unemployment income, the wages still wouldn't have been enough to keep them from having to give up the house.

edw519 17y ago

I'm trying to be sympathetic, but I'm having trouble getting the numbers to work. He picks up $700 per week in unemployment compensation. That's $3000 per month. How much is their rent? Have they considered making special arrangements with their landlord? I doubt if she has many other options (other tenants or a buyer). I really felt bad for this family until she turned the job down. In my mind, that changed everything.

jlees 17y ago
They're living so hand-to-mouth that she simply couldn't afford the immediate cash-in-hand loss of the job despite any future payoff. By the sounds of it, the landlord was pretty damn stretched, I doubt they could have negotiated. Maybe there's the option of replacement tenants downsizing for similar reasons, otherwise I feel a bit sorry for the poor landlord..
paulbaumgart 17y ago
Probably a little bit under a grand: http://southbend.craigslist.org/search/apa?query=middlebury&catAbbreviation=apa&minAsk=min&maxAsk=max&bedrooms=2 http://southbend.craigslist.org/search/apa?query=middlebury&... You're right it's probably doable on a strict budget, but kids are expensive, I've heard. Then again, so is beer and lotto tickets, but he might not be exaggerating when he says that's the last thing keeping him sane.
- randallsquared 17y ago
  Then again, so is beer and lotto tickets, but he might not be exaggerating when he says that's the last thing keeping him sane. Indeed. There have been times when I spent my last $10 on chips, dip, and soda, just for the temporary mood boost.
orangecat 17y ago
I really felt bad for this family until she turned the job down. In my mind, that changed everything. That's understandable to me; she'd essentially be paying to work. That would both worsen their immediate cash situation and make it harder for her to search for a decent job. The real problem is the ridiculous incentives caused by unemployment payments that immediately go to zero once you have any source of income. The point where I lost sympathy was when the guy was making a good salary and was determined to spend every cent of it. If you're living paycheck to paycheck in the best of times, you are going to get screwed, it's just a question of when.

pavel_lishin 17y ago

Considering that the guy eats donuts and drinks jugs of Pepsi, I think that spending $40/week wouldn't kill them.

swombat 17y ago
Yeah, I was reading that, and the bit about having 8 beers every week after collecting his unemployment check, and the bit about buying 4 packs of cigarettes, and various other things, and thinking - wtf? No wonder you're broke. Get your priorities straight.