The United States has the greatest economic wealth in the world. Therefore, it is known as the “land of opportunities” — which makes thousands of immigrants decide to live there. However, the levels of poverty are increasing more and more, presenting another aspect of the USA.
In this article, see what it looks like in 2021 and also how some Americans have benefits to keep poverty rates down, as is the case with loans for federal employees. Keep reading!
What is the poverty level in 2021 in the United States?
In 2020, there were 37.2 million Americans in poverty, about 3.3 million more than in 2019, the first growth after five years of declines. This is the first significant decline in median household income since 2011. The data was released by the US Census Bureau.
The official poverty rate was 11.4%, 1 percentage point higher than in 2019. Unemployment insurance benefits reduced the rate by 1.4 percentage point. Without this aid, another 4.7 million people would be in poverty, and the overall rate would be 12.9% in 2020.
Millions of working-class families in the United States are so poor that they can no longer shop in supermarkets. Instead, they are buying food from “US$ 1 stores”. According to the Red website, Dollar General, the largest chain of stores of its kind in the US, has 32 percent more customers than before the coronavirus. Around 1,650 new outlets are expected to open this year.
The picture of the losses is also in the nearly 43 million people who owe US$ 1.6 trillion in student loans. Most will never be able to afford them.
It takes US$ 12.77 in July 2021 to equal the purchasing power of the US$ 1.60 federal minimum wage that was enacted in February, 1968. But the federal minimum wage is just US$ 7.25 an hour.
What are the poorest cities in the country?
Check out which are currently the poorest cities across the United States. The data brings the reasons and also the poverty rate. See also how the Americans who reside in these places do to survive.
City of Urban Honolulu, Hawaii
Also considered one of the poorest, the capital of Hawaii is the only one where a person can earn up to US$ 67.500 a year and still qualify as a “low income earner” in urban Honolulu and on government housing programs. That’s well over double the average household income in Albany, Georgia.
However, on the face of it, the average value of a home in the state is around US$ 754.700, so you need all the financial help you can get to buy. On the other hand, mortgage rates have never been cheaper.
City of Anchorage, Alaska
Anchorage is considered the poorest city in The Last Frontier, its median household income is $82,716, the poverty rate is 10.1%. This is the only Alaskan city completed in the review.
The city has a poverty rate that matches that of the state, and its average household income is actually much higher than the state median.
The state generates jobs as a major oil producer, and provides residents with an annual reduction in profits through the Alaska Permanent Fund.
City of Manchester, New Hampshire
The city of Manchester in southern New Hampshire may become a thriving urban center, but on average 12% of residents live in poverty, five percentage points more than the entire state.
New Hampshire, in recent years, has had the highest peak of income inequality in the entire country. The city is particularly painful, with an unemployment rate of 5.3% in 2019, compared to 3% for the state.
Another common problem is the lack of housing that persists and with the pandemic caused by COVID-19 it only got worse. Attempts to find emergency housing for people living in difficult situations were quickly stopped.
