downsize – The Research & Writings of ALISON D. GILBERT

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THE POOR MIDDLE CLASS CRISIS FINANCIAL SURVIVAL RESOURCE GUIDE

December 26, 2016 No Comments

OVERVIEW

The Poor Middle Class Crisis is real and it is serious. This Financial Survival Resource Guide can help individuals and families alleviate the effects of the Poor Middle Class Crisis. The guide consists of a series of blog posts. The goals of this Financial Survival Resource Guide are:
1. to make people aware of tools to help build a financial survival toolkit
2. to encourage people to form ‘financial survival support groups’ or communities with other poor middle class people
3. to share our experience in the day-to-day survival as poor middle class people to give other people hope for survival

At this time, the guide is a series of blog posts written by me for people like me, the poor middle class. This post is an overview that introduces all of the blog posts in this guide. Because I am a visual person and I love tool boxes, I am using this great lime green tool storage box as the storage box for my ‘Financial Survival Toolkit’.

An example of a Poor Middle Class Financial Survival Toolkit Being Built — A Poor Middle Class Financial Survival Toolkit Being Built with Suggestions from this Resource Guide

LIST OF BLOG POSTS

Each blog post title is an underlined link to the post itself. Click on it to view a post that interests you. They include:

Part 1: The Poor Middle Class Crisis

my poor middle class financial survival toolkit — The Secret Shame of Middle Class Americans from My Secret Shame from The Atlantic by Neal Gabler

Part 2: A Budget Is A Crucial Financial Survival Tool For The Poor Middle Class

financial survival toolkit for the poor middle class — Free Online Accounting & Bookkeeping service

Part 3: Using Credit Cards

Part 4: More About Poor Middle Class Financial Survival Tools

Part 5: Poor Middle Class Thrifty Shopping Tools

A Homemade Piggy Bank to Hold Your Savings from Thrifty Shopping Tips, Homesthetics.net

Part 6: The Poor Middle Class Housing Crisis

Part 7: Poor Middle Class Housing Alternatives

alternative housing — A Tiny Home Design from The Tiny Heirloom Company

Part 8: Poor Middle Class Affordable Housing

Part 9: Alternative Living Resources

Franklin Caravan Renovation Project

Part 10: The US Homeless Housing Crisis

living off grid — The U.S. Cities With The Largest Homeless Populations by Niall McCarthy from Forbes.com

Part 11: The Poor Middle Class Nutrition Crisis

Part 12: The Poor Middle Class Healthcare Insurance Crisis

Part 13: Our Story: One Day From Homeless

is under construction.

Sources & Resources*

The Viper Tool Storage Company

A Facebook group called, The Poor Middle Class Crisis

A Facebook Group Called, Next Level Minimalism

*All other sources and resources are within the blog posts themselves.

RAISING SOCIAL AWARENESS, The ALISON D. GILBERT Blog, THE ECONOMY & ENVIRONMENT

POOR MIDDLE CLASS HOUSING ALTERNATIVES

December 21, 2016 No Comments

Poor Middle Class Housing Alternatives

This is a continuation of the last post, The Poor Middle Class Housing Crisis. In this post, poor middle-class housing alternatives are presented. This can involve some ‘out of the box thinking’ solutions. These tools can include:
1. Downsize possessions
2. Buy or rent a smaller home
3. Rent subsidized or senior housing
4. Find Ways To Live Rent Free
5. Invest In A Tiny House
6. Relocate to a cheaper area, state or country
7. Live off the grid
8. Embrace an RV Lifestyle

Downsizing

Have you ever noticed how many storage facilities there are? This has become a booming industry. We have too much stuff and we don’t know how to part with it. So we rent space to horde it. My rule of thumb is this. If you feel the need to rent a storage space for your overflow of belongings, don’t. Downsize instead.
1. Donate possessions to the Salvation Army or other charity
2. Give things to your children or someone you know who wants and needs them
3. Have a garage sale
4. Sell things online
5. Buy or rent to a smaller, less expensive residence

Buy Or Rent A Smaller Home

It is much easier to go bigger than smaller. But for the poor middle class, the latter may be a necessity. It may be difficult emotionally to let go of a treasured home. But would you rather be in debt in a home you adore or be solvent in a house you can afford? For those in crisis as part of the poor middle class in the US, when it comes to housing selling and downsizing may be the only way to go. Even for those not in crisis, more modest living can open more doors than it closes, financially.

Subsidized Housing

I have found this to be the most challenging, time-consuming and confusing of all the tools for the poor middle-class financial survival toolkit. Because of this, I feel that an entire blog post needs to be dedicated to this issue. In addition, the other tools will also be on an additional post. ‘Out of the box,’ alternative housing is for the poor middle class of all ages, not only seniors.
1. Live Rent Free
2. Invest in a Tiny House
3. Relocate to another area, cheaper state or another country
4. Live Off The Grid

This housing discussion continues with the post, Affordable Housing.