The Midwest has a reputation for being “affordable,” but is that true for people who actually live here? We are not immune to rising gas prices, electricity bills, insurance and day care costs – not to mention higher price tags for housing, whether you rent or own.
According to the Urban Institute’s Catherine Harvey, people who live in the Midwest are experiencing the cost-of-living crunch at about the same rates as people in other regions.
“About half of people in American families do not have the resources to cover essential expenses to live securely in their communities,” said Harvey, who is based in Omaha.
Simply put, said Charles Gascon, an economist and assistant vice president at the St. Louis Federal Reserve Bank:
“Prices have grown faster than wages and incomes, so things have gotten much more costly relative to income.”
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