G.O.O.D

Source: The Raw Story

Homelessness and hunger increased in an overwhelming majority of 25 US cities in the past year, driven by the foreclosure crisis and rising unemployment, a survey showed Friday.

Out of 25 cities across the United States surveyed by the US Conference of Mayors, 83 percent said homelessness in general had increased over the past year while 16 cities, or nearly two-thirds of those polled, cited a rise in the number of families who had been forced out of their homes.

In Louisville, Kentucky, the number of homeless families increased 58 percent in 2008 to 931 families from 591 people in 2007, with the rise blamed on soaring food, health care, transportation and energy prices.

Boston, Massachusetts and Providence, Rhode Island blamed the rise in family homelessness on evictions by landlords whose rental properties were foreclosed.

Meanwhile, the number of people seeking food assistance for the first time was up in all 21 cities with data on the issue, and was “particularly notable among working families stressed by the increase in food prices and the slowdown in the economy,” the report said.

Officials in Philadelphia told the survey that “new people coming to food cupboards are people that are employed with children.

“With food prices increasing as much as 30 percent and incomes either staying the same or decreasing, it is impossible for them to feed their families,” the report said.

When asked to identify the three main causes of hunger, 83 percent of cities cited poverty, 74 percent cited unemployment and 57 percent cited the high cost of housing.

And while demand for food assistance was up, providing it was more difficult for cities as the faltering economy and rising joblessness — two key reasons for the increased demand — also caused the number of donations to fall.

Greater efficiency in large grocery stores and food suppliers has also shrunk the availability of food assistance because it has decreased food donations from the large organizations, which are the main donors to food banks.

Food banks — places where donated food is made available free-of-charge to needy people — are the main providers of food aid in most US cities.

They have struggled in the past year to maintain stock levels due to the increased cost of food and fuel.

“Los Angeles, Boston and Portland reported that increases in the price of food have lead to a decrease in the quantity of food they are able to purchase,” the report said.

“In Phoenix, where the cost of fuel and trucking expenses has increased by as much as 72 percent, the total amount of food distributed decreased by 13 percent even though the level of funding increased by 30 percent,” it said.

The price of food increased 6.2 percent on average over the last year, the largest increase in nearly 20 years, the report said.

And during the 12-month period ending in September for which most of the cities provided data, gasoline (petrol) prices skyrocketed in the United States to reach record highs of more than four dollars per gallon to the consumer, with the price of diesel fuel used by truckers going even higher.

Technorati Tags: Homelessness, hunger

Source: Reuters

President-elect Barack Obama has vowed to help middle-class U.S. homeowners facing foreclosure, but he has said little about how he will help low-income families made homeless by a worsening economy.

Obama has spoken broadly about boosting affordable housing and restoring public housing subsidies. But with economists forecasting a deep recession in 2009, he may find it hard to find the money to fulfill those promises soon.

At the same time, advocacy groups and the country’s czar for combating homelessness say immediate action is needed to halt the foreclosures of tens of thousands of homes and rehouse thousands of families amid the worst financial crisis since the Great Depression of the 1930s.

“President-elect Obama understands the economy will only get back on track if we end the foreclosure crisis. And he realizes that part of ending the crisis is both preventing and ending homelessness for families losing their homes,” said Jeremy Rosen of the National Policy and Advocacy Council on Homelessness.

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Technorati Tags: Homelessness

Source: USATODAY.com

More families with children are becoming homeless as they face mounting economic pressures, including mortgage foreclosures, according to a USA TODAY survey of a dozen of the largest cities in the nation.

Local authorities say the number of families seeking help has risen in Atlanta, Boston, Denver, Minneapolis, New York, Phoenix, Portland, Seattle and Washington.

“Everywhere I go, I hear there is an increase” in the need for housing aid, especially for families, says Philip Mangano, executive director of the U.S. Interagency Council on Homelessness, which coordinates federal programs. He says the main causes are job losses and foreclosures.

Other factors have been higher food and fuel prices hitting families with “no cushion,” says Nan Roman of the National Alliance to End Homelessness.

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homelessness

Source: CNN.com

The number of homeless families in Massachusetts has surged — a spike that has overwhelmed the state’s shelter capacity and forced it to again place homeless families in motels.

Driving the increase is the sour economy, rising energy costs, escalating unemployment and shortage of affordable housing. For the first time, the state is tracking how many families are winding up homeless due to foreclosures.

“You’re seeing a perfect storm,” said Robyn Frost, executive director of the Massachusetts Coalition for the Homeless.

The upswing is also putting pressure on a landmark initiative by Gov. Deval Patrick to virtually end homelessness in Massachusetts in the next five years.

In just the past 12 months, the number of homeless families living in Massachusetts motels has skyrocketed from 17 in September 2007 to 550 in September 2008. That’s on top of another 1,800 or so families in shelters.

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