Living Below the Poverty Line
 

Could you/can you do it?

I personally don't find it at all difficult. Possibly growing up in eastern KY has done it. But I have a smart phone, high speed internet, a roof over my head, and never go hungry. I also have time and money to buy video game and music stuff, but I'm "under the poverty line" by a little bit.

I don't go out of my way and see concerts/sporting events on the weekly...or even the monthly. I'll go see the red legs play once a season, go to an amusement park or two, and will go out to a bar or something once a month or so, but I never run out of money, and I never stress it too much. I pay about $90 every two weeks for health/dental/vision insurance, still pay rent and car insurance...am I missing something? I'm happy and at least moderately healthy, with a little money left over for leisure.

This really makes me not want to empathize with my customers. I've had a few say, "I only make $2500 every two weeks..." And it's like, "yeah? I don't make that in a month, but I still pay all my bills (including my own cell phone bill which is higher than the one they pay) and still have money for leisure time.

I drive a 2001 Chevy Cavalier, but it has 51k miles, and is in good shape, ostensibly. I have a home with bills. I buy food. I pay bills. But I put the bills first and then see what's left over for entertainment.

I also contribute money for my sister to do her incredibly price-y cheer training, because my mom is a single mother who has a mortgage and all manner of other stress my dad doesn't bother to assist with. He wants to pay child support, but my mom won't accept it, because she's a bitch. Anyway.

I spend so much money on life stuff, but still have money to have fun. I'm not wealthy. My great grandmother is wealthy, but I'm not. My mom's not.

But I'm living under the "poverty line," and completely disgusted that people pulling six figures claim to be able to afford only the "essentials."

See those people that complain about that. They are living outside of their means. They probably have way too many expenses so the large amount of money they are making is going right out of the door at the same time. They most likely have keeping up with the Joneses syndrome.

You live comfortably inside of your means and know how to make ends meet but not everyone is like that. I know what it's like to be super poor and eating sandwishes(sandwiches with mayonaise in it and you wish you had some meat or cheese to put inside of it.) from growing up. I've always been pretty good with my budget and the handling of my finances because I told myself that I don't ever want to be that poor when I'm living on my own. I know how to live within my means like you do. Some people are horrible with their finances or feel the need to keep up with their neighbors and friends when it comes to certain luxuries.

I lived off of $750 for three months backpacking in Europe in '10. I wouldn't consider it "below the poverty line" because I was often staying with people/families/friends/strangers with nice houses. But I did have to hitchhike from Sofia to Berlin to catch my flight back to the US. I sold a bunch of stuff for food on the way. It was all very liberating and I felt like I could live like that forever, at the time.

I grew up under the poverty line, don't really remember it though because my mom got married a third time, it feels like just so she could have a second income, I don't think she even likes my stepdad lmao

When I lived with my ex we pretty much lived below the poverty line but it wasn't that bad honestly, it was better than being homeless and living in Barnes and Noble like I did or the homeless shelter, which I also did for about a week.

I'm lucky my mother gladly took me back in when I decided to leave my ex, since now I have a lot more money and I can basically spend it all on myself/save it to pay for my classes come fall.

yea i could do it but i got a 1 room studio loft type apartment. its really cheap. anymore and i couldnt do it. i do go to the casino more than i should but ive been winning blackjack lately. i think the more rural you are probably the easier it is.

Actually, a wish sandwich is
Blues Brothers - Rubber Biscuit - YouTube

Love that song.

Anyway, not quite sure classifies as the poverty line over here. I would say I'm good at living minimalist when its required, like a fiver a week for food without having to go through bins but I'm probably not entirely capable, I've usually had a family member (sister) to get me out of a pinch when needed so can't really claim I could cope solo.

For 3 months I lived off $50 a week for everything aside from rent (which was covered by the rest of the payment I received). That included hospital bills, bank bills, food, transport, the lot.

The only way I managed it was because I'd only spend $10 of food and I barely ate.

I thought the World Bank's official poverty line was defined as living on an income of under $1.25 per day or a yearly income of $456. Other poverty indexes measure a number of qualities of living that I guarantee not one person on this forum lacks enough of to be considered "in poverty".

I lived on that for two months during the summer then, actually.

After living in Nicaragua and making friends with kids who don't have shoes, shirts, or food, and live in piles of trash (quite literally), I will never again consider myself poor, no matter how little I own. From now on, if I own a car, have more than one outfit, are capable of eating more than once a day, and have a roof over my head, I am rich.

That's fair. I was more going for "if you can afford internet and you have a roof over your head, you're good", but I know you've had a real brush with it.

Based on your description it sounds like you may indeed be missing something: children or any kind of life event that has left you in serious debt. You don't sound like you're able to save, which means you're just one hospital stay or serious car breakdown from finding yourself living in the red with just as much trouble digging your way out as other people living below the poverty line.

Yeah I have to agree... I have seen poverty true poverty I lived in Kenya and I was devastated by what I saw row after row of trash bag houses, or people eating termites outta the ground.. that's poverty...

I have been poor by US standards, and I have been rich by US standards... and you know being rich was not all it was cracked up to be, I just want to have a roof, food, and every once and a while, be able to buy something that strikes my bizarre fancy...

This annoys me, too. The more you earn, the more you spend. I work in a field where there are a lot of very "middle class" people and some from quite wealthy families or have wealthy partners/husbands/wives. I often hear them complaining about what they cannot afford, when they are likely easily earning $200k+ in their household. One woman at my work was complaining that she couldn't stay at home to be a mum, because she couldn't afford it, or something. Her husband earns about $100k in the mining industry. They go on constant overseas holidays, their kids go to private schools, splurge lots on luxury items. It just seems so ridiculous to me.

Bah, and you told me you were a teacher.

I'm not sure what the poverty line is, but I would have assumed it was much, much lower than the level of income mentioned in the OP.

Most people will always adjust their lifestyle to their income, and therefore feel they dont have enough expendable income. After being unemployed for two years straight, and currently unemployed and studying, I think I've at least learned to choose my words more carefully when I claim not to have the money for something. Usually when someone says that, it means they do but they have that money earmarked for something else.

Ha, I am usually a lowly teacher! But when I was doing my PhD I was working with a bunch of university academics and people in Educational consultation and other random stuff...

What you say is true, but even if you have the funds earmarked for something else, that means you still can't afford to buy whatever the luxury is. E.g. I could say, I can't afford to go overseas because I need the money my current rent and bills, but someone else could say they can't afford to go overseas because they need the money to service their Lambourgini. So even if you can technically afford it but have the money there for something else, there are still variables...

I consider having clean drinking water, healthy food, a running car and a nice house a luxury. But when people are making $100k+ a year and complain about not being able to afford their annual overseas holiday, or a personal cleaner for their house, or designer brand clothes... It's just getting a little ridiculous.

I certainly see your point, but then again it would technically be true that because of the luxuries they have already afforded themselves, they can't afford the next one.

It's all about priorities. It's natural to say we can't afford something, like a holiday, when what we really mean is we are choosing to spend that money elsewhere. It's just not always technically true.

Yeah, and I consider food and a place to live a priority... So I'm choosing that over a holiday. It's a little different to choosing a Lambourgini over a holiday!

Anyway, point was that you spend what you earn. People earning three digits will say they can't afford the luxuries they want, and people earning minimum wage will as well. Some families with kids I know can easily live on about $45k a year, others say they would struggle on anything less than $100k - which relates back to the OP and the discussion of what people think they need to live on based on their style of living and choices of living expenses.

Hehe, yes. Thats pretty much the point I'm driving at too. That theres often a difference between something we "can't afford" and something we actually cannot afford.

Of course I consider prioritising food and shelter over the holiday, and prioritising a flash car over a holiday to be two very different situations. In the first instance, if the holiday money is being spent on those things, then I would say that person actually cannot afford a holiday.

But the OP was about living below the poverty line, which really is difficult.

Definitely, which is why it is frustrating when people earning well above the poverty line, even well above the average wage, complain about not being able to afford what they consider "necessities."

Also, I find it hard to believe that many people on this forum are actually living under the poverty line and have been for any extended period of time. I work with children from generational poverty, most are illiterate because they leave school at an early age to work to provide money for their family, for living expenses. I can see most people posting here are pretty literate, educated and healthy as far as I've gathered. Also, it's easy to say "I'm living under the poverty line and I find it easy" when you're under 30 with no kids of your own to care for or medical conditions to pay for that stem from a lifetime of neglect.

^ True that.
Especially when a person is living at home and/or renting with a roommate. Poverty lines don't mean the same to a 21 year old kid living in an apartment with a buddy as it means to a single mother of 4 in the ghetto.

As for me, I make more than the median income in my state, and it's more than enough for me to "survive", however, it probably wouldn't be if I had a family to take care of. I could "survive" at the poverty line, but I'd be renting and living check to check and throwing myself at the mercy of a hooptie that might not start up in the morning for the rest of my life.
For me, that's not what I want, and I don't feel bad about it.

I totally agree with this. I can live on a lot less than I thought, for example after paying rent I'd have $50 over for food (this was only this year) and had to make basic food like toast, sandwiches and a stirfry with cheap vegetables bought from the vege shop. I struggled to pay any of my bills because I needed to use the rest of the $50 on presricptions ($5 for one item), I had bank fees (3 different banks), credit cards, ambulance bill, medical bill, and so on. I managed it but I much prefer to have at least $100-150 over for these things that I have to pay off.

When I got a job it took me 3 months to catch up with the bills and get everything paid off but am still waiting to clear a couple of other ones hanging around like a bad smell.

I wouldn't feel bad about it either Mr. 740 was that it?

I'm jealous of it tbh. working my way up there though.

772.

But ultimately, although I probably don't "need" the things I desire, I certainly don't feel bad about having worked so hard for so long to obtain them, nor do I feel like I should intentionally stunt my own aspirations because there are those without them, or without the ability to cultivate them for whatever reason.

Providing you have food in ya belly, a shirt on your back, and, particularly if you live in cold climes, a roof over your head, then poverty can be a good thing and actually improve your life and sense of wellbeing.