FL Residents Above Poverty Level Can't Afford Basic Necessities, Report Says

TAMPA BAY, FL — It’s more expensive than ever to live in the greater Suncoast region — and Florida as a whole — new data from United Way Suncoast and its research partner, United for ALICE, shows. While many families may be above the poverty line, they struggle to afford the necessities of life, a report said.

The annual cost to make ends meet for certain families across the five-county region — including DeSoto, Hillsborough, Manatee, Pinellas and Sarasota — has skyrocketed, the annual ALICE report said. An average household survival budget has risen to $96,516 for a family of four with an infant and a toddler.

The report offers an in-depth look at the growing number of households struggling to afford essentials.

“What we're seeing and what it means is that expenses are continuing to go up year over year and that is causing more and more families to fall below the ALICE threshold, which means they’re struggling financially,” Doug Griesenauer, vice president of community impact, United Way Suncoast, told Patch.

ALICE stands for "Asset Limited, Income Constrained, Employed," and a survival budget reflects the minimum amount needed to live and work in today’s economy — including housing, child care, food, transportation, health care and a basic smartphone plan, researchers said.

Some communities have surged past the $100,000 mark for affordability. In Pinellas County, that number has risen 8 percent to $108,480 per household and to $104,424 in Sarasota County, up 10 percent.

Griesenauer hopes the data helps people “understand the real dollar threshold of what it means to get by,” noting that there are 658,000 households below the ALICE threshold, about 30,000 more than last year.

“Which is a lot of families,” Griesenauer said. “It’s a massive situation. A lot of people are struggling.”

Many families often forgo medications and cut corners where they can to make ends meet and to ensure they have child care and other necessities, he said. “Or their kids go to slightly varying child care to save a couple of bucks in order to afford gas to get to work.”

In other scenarios, families are priced out of the housing market and forced to leave their communities, or many opt to get a second job.

“Our families are resilient. Our families are creative,” Griesenauer said. “But it doesn’t mean it’s easy to make ends meet these days.”

He hopes the data in the report can effect change throughout the community as leaders of local organizations consider the income requirements of the people they support and provide services to.

“This is really sobering data. You should feel your feelings when looking through this,” Griesenauer said. “I hope what people take from this is a compulsion to act. … We want people to think about what can we do to ensure that our community and everyone in our community has their basic needs met. It’s a call to action and a big one.”

• Get The Latest Local News (For Free!) With One Quick Tap