Local Facebook users reacted with disbelief yesterday evening as they came across a post by 24-year-old Jen McPherson reading:
“Lost my digs… long story, cops were involved, let me just say people really show you who they are when you need them most. So I need a new place immediately, preferably in Kingston. I need someplace walkable, safe, preferably with another girl, and cool with [her dog] Mickey and [her cat] Rapunzel. A yard and a place to store my bike would also be cool but I’m not picky 🙂 $500 is the most I can spend. DM me if you have any leads. Thanks!”
The post appeared with Facebook’s “Looking for recommendations” formatting with a light blue circle covering much of the mid-Hudson Valley.
“Good luck with that,” thought waitress Elizabeth Symanski, 26, of Kingston, who recently saw the rent on a two-bedroom unit in the Dutch Castle Apartment Complex she shares with a friend increase by $300 from $1300 to $1600 per month.
“Is Jen stoned?” thought landscaper Ethan Meyer, 28, of Rosendale, who lives in a cottage on the property of a retired couple, at a cost of $1300 per month, plus utilities, with no pets allowed and no laundry on premises.
According to Ulster County’s annual housing affordability survey, average rents in Ulster County have risen by over 55 percent since 2002, much faster than wages. The survey also showed that more than half of renters qualify as “housing cost-burdened,” meaning they spend more than 30 percent of their income on housing.
Nearly all of those who read McPherson’s plea say they qualified as “housing cost-burdened.”
Interestingly, McPherson’s number of $500 would just fit within the 30 percent threshold provided by her $415 weekly take-home pay (after taxes and health insurance) as a barista. Housing experts say when renters pay more than 30 percent for housing, it’s difficult to keep up on other expenses, including transportation, entertainment, vacations and saving for retirement.
As of press time, there was only one response to McPherson’s post: A message from a creepy male regular at her coffee shop offering to let her crash on his couch “for as long as [she needs] to.”