TRAVERSE CITY — Poverty is on the rise in Michigan including in rural parts of the state.
The U.S. Census Bureau recently released a report from 2022 that shows Michigan’s poverty rate now ranks 13th in the nation.
The report says around 13% of the state lives in poverty with the poverty rate increasing in 49 of 83 counties. Wayne, Mecosta and Lake Counties have the highest poverty rate at more than 20%.
The Director for the Northwest Michigan Coalition to End Homelessness, Ashley Halladay-Schmandt, said rural counties are seeing higher poverty rates due to the lack of resources.
“More people are experiencing homelessness simply due to the fact that there’s not enough affordable housing in the region. So, as poverty rates increase across the state, so does the cost of living,” Halladay-Schmandt said.
Halladay-Schmandt said while homelessness and poverty are two different issues, she says progress needs to be made on both fronts in order to solve the problems.
The coalition is in its second year of an initiative to end chronic homelessness by 2028. They plan to provide permanent supportive housing to 70 disabled people experiencing long term homelessness.
“We want to get them into supportive housing so they never have to experience homelessness again,” Halladay-Schmandt said.
