For the poor, Indy isn't so hospitable, study says

[hippiechick]

http://www.indystar.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060718/NEWS01/607180430

For the poor, Indy isn't so hospitable, study says
Report: City ranks near top in services that foster poverty

By Theodore Kim

Indianapolis prides itself on being among the most affordable large cities in the nation, but that low-cost living does not always include the city's working poor. Predatory lending, pricey car insurance and high-cost mortgages sap the pocketbooks of low-income families across the nation, according to a report to be released today by the independent Brookings Institution. Indianapolis ranked near the top in a number of categories that Brookings measured to gauge poverty levels here and in 11 other cities of various sizes.

"I think legislators are aware of the problem but not really aware of how big it is," said Lisa Travis, the advocacy and education coordinator of the Indiana Institute for Working Families. "And the poverty rate in our state is growing."

Indianapolis ranked second in the number of low-income residents who buy "refund anticipation" tax loans. It also had the second-highest concentration of rent-to-own furniture stores and the fourth-highest concentration of check cashers and alternative short-term loan providers.
The study also found that grocery stores here are much smaller in poverty-stricken areas compared with Indianapolis' more affluent neighborhoods.

The size difference indicates that the working poor have fewer shopping options and, thus, pay more for their groceries. The disparity here was the largest in the nation. Most of the other cities in the survey -- including New York, San Francisco and Los Angeles -- had a much higher cost of living than Indianapolis, according to at least one online database. Low-income families -- defined as those making less than $30,000 a year -- pay an estimated $6.5 billion a year on extra costs on basic services and transactions, such as cashing checks, the report found. About 1.6 million low-income adults shell out high fees because they are forced to rent simple goods like appliances and furniture, according to Brookings.


... more at link ...


There is definitely a marked disparity in this city. One wonders what our elected leaders (cough) would say to this report, when asked? What long term strategy might any of them have (cough) to raise the economic outlook for those near the poverty line, most vulnerable to the financial predators?

[LisaLynne]

1. It's really interesting in a scary sort of way when you think about ...

how the less money you have, the less options you have for SAVING that money. It's a like a "poor tax", similar to what people mean when they talk about the "woman tax". If you have the money to buy a stove outright, instead of renting, as was the example in this article, or paying for it with credit, you are much better off. The stove will cost you less. If you can't afford to pay cash for the stove, you're paying extra money, no matter what you do. And people NEED to have somethign to cook on. It's not a luxury they can do without. Ugh, when you think about it, the unfairness of it all is so frustrating.

But, yeah, I'm sure our elected "representatives" are going to jump right on this issue. :eyes:

[Indy_Dem_Defender]

2. About the rent to own stores

I think alot of the people who get this stuff at from these scam stores either definiton of the champaigne taste/beer pocketbook or are not the sharpest tool in the shed.

Like a few years ago my step-brother really wanted a VCR, He didn't have the money to get one and he isn't a person who knows the meaning of saving, so he goes to one of these places and gets a VCR for 18 dollars a week. Now this amount he had to pay for 26 weeks, so when he was through he ended up paying $468 dollars for a VCR. This was when a good VCR better than the one he bought cost $80 dollars tops. Not a very smart move he just overpaid by almost $400 dollars. He could of waited a month and saved his money and had a VCR, but he wanted it instantly.


I've heard from people who have work at these rent to buy stores, that the biggest selling items are big screen TVs. I think a good majority of people buying from these places buy items that aren't really basically needs (Example Washer/Driver, Frig, Stove). They have no patience and just plain don't know a thing about managing money. They don't and won't save and it cost them in the long run.