The North Shore Paradox

In an area known for its prosperity, nearly a third of the resident households do not make enough money to afford the housing that is available.

In Evanston, and along the North Shore, an employee working full time must earn $18 an hour, or $37,440 annualized, in order to afford the housing that is available. In Evanston nearly 28% of Evanston's households have total incomes under $37,440.  As a result, of the 9000 renter households in Evanston, 3000 are spending over 50% of their income on rent and utilities.

While there are fewer renter households throughout the rest of the North Shore, there are still over 21,000 people living below the poverty line. These 10,000 or more households are all at risk of homelessness.  80% are spending more than 50% of their income to keep a roof over their head leaving them a paycheck away from homelessness. 

 
Wanted: Affordable Housing, Living Wage Jobs
Connections works with those who are fighting to keep their homes, and with those who have lost that battle. Some of our clients have the mental health and substance abuse issues that are often associated with people living on the street. Many do not. However, the root causes of homelessness for all of them are twofold:

• Lack of affordable housing for those with low incomes or disabilities. Illinois ranks 12th in the nation for the most expensive housing.
• Lack of living-wage jobs (meaning a job that will pay at least 30% of one's rent or mortgage). 

Connections' Employment, Housing, and Homelessness Prevention programs address the gap between people's needs and the economic possibility of meeting those needs--and point to the end of homelessness on the North Shore.