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Families Statewide Struggle to Survive
New research into the cost of living finds more families in Illinois are having a tough time.

Information being released by the Social IMPACT Research Center shows more than a million families statewide do not bring in enough money to be self-sufficient, or meeting a no frills family budget.

Associate Director of Social IMPACT Research Center Amy Terpstra says the median household income in Illinois has declined, and for more families, that is making it difficult to make ends meet.

"This is happening at the same time when the cost of everything has gone up," Terpstra said. "Health care costs have risen exponentially. Housing costs have gone up, even food costs -- all of these things have gone up. But we have less money in our pockets to pay for these things, so families are getting effectively pinched."

Terpstra says it amounts to about 29 percent of the state's households, but only about ten percent of Illinois families are officially in poverty. Living above the poverty line is not the same as making enough money to provide for your family's needs.

The research goes along with a University of Washington project called the Self-Sufficiency Standard, indexing the cost of living to geography and family size.

The study excluded households headed by senior citizens.


For more information on the project, CLICK HERE.
10 14 09 by Newsroom
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