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Employment in NWA


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Arkansas in general is falling further and further behind the rest of the country in regards to low-income family assistance. Northwest Arkansas is seeing more and more low-income families not receiving financial assistance and having nowhere else to turn. With all the growth in NWA I'm afraid we're leaving a majority of our community to fend for themselves.

The only thing positive I've seen recently is the opening of the Schewmaker Center for Workforce Technologies, but in reality these families making less than $14,000 per year aren't going to make use of that resource.

What NWA and Arkansas in general needs is an increase in the minimum wage, real low-income housing that is clean and safe for families, and most importantly real State financial assistance that will allow these families to co-exist with the rest of the community and not be ignored.

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Yeah the average income compared to the average price of a home here in NWA is bad.

The price of homes in NWA isn't really a good indicator of wages because if you look at Steele Crossings website it states the median household income for the 5-mile radius around Steele Crossing is $53,621. Yet, if you step a foot outside that 5-mile radius the median income becomes $36,729 in Springdale and $31,345 in Fayetteville as of the 2000 Census.

The median house value is $87,500 in Springdale and $100,300 in Fayetteville as of the 2000 Census. This is also misleading because the average new home being built today is priced around $350,000.

The real indicator of wages in NWA is how many people are receiving state financial aid and even that is skewed because the state is trying to hide how much financial aid it's dishing out. I read somewhere that over 60% of Arkansans receive state financial aid. Maybe Northwest Arkansas is an exception but I personally don't know anyone making even close to $53,621 per year and I only know one person making $36,729 per year. But I do know a lot of people making less than $24,000 per year. Maybe I just don't know the right people.

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Yeah the average income compared to the average price of a home here in NWA is bad.

It's all relative.

That's true when comparing to the rest of Arkansas, where many rural areas are absurdly cheap to live. However, compared to most of the country and that nat'l average NWA is really quite affordable. As a matter of fact DFW is considered one of the least expensive major metro areas in the country but rents here are 50% higher than NWA.

Now, it's true that the average immigrant working at the chicken plant can't afford a new home on a golf course, but they can live a lot more comfortably than just about any other place in the U.S.

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It's all relative.

That's true when comparing to the rest of Arkansas, where many rural areas are absurdly cheap to live. However, compared to most of the country and that nat'l average NWA is really quite affordable. As a matter of fact DFW is considered one of the least expensive major metro areas in the country but rents here are 50% higher than NWA.

Now, it's true that the average immigrant working at the chicken plant can't afford a new home on a golf course, but they can live a lot more comfortably than just about any other place in the U.S.

I agree that compared to a lot of areas it's cheaper to live in NWA. My rent is only $480 per month for a 2 bedroom apartment in Rogers. It's clean and safe with lots of landscaping. I think they actually care more about the landscaping than anything else. Lost Springs Country Club and Golf Course wraps around the apartment complex and residents have free membership to the club. The buildings are old and lack amenities when compared to newer apartment communities but what can one expect for under $500 per month.

When I lived in Dallas cheap rent for a 2 bedroom apartment was around $600 per month. That was over 10 years ago! I can't imagine what it is now.

Most of the new apartment communities being built in NWA rent for around $1200 per month which is plain ridiculous for this area IMO.

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I agree about low-income housing projects, I haven't seen any go up in my neck of the woods, and I think they would be quite welcomed.

I just think that if an area is going to have lower wages there should be low-income housing to go along with it. Right now there is just moderate-income housing that saves a family earning under $24,000 per year about $70 per month off their rent.

Did you know there are no HUD apartments in NWA? Where do families go when the head of the household loses his or her job? HUD is supposed to help people with transitions like that but the only place you can go in NWA are area churches and places like Helping Hands in Bentonville.

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I just think that if an area is going to have lower wages there should be low-income housing to go along with it. Right now there is just moderate-income housing that saves a family earning under $24,000 per year about $70 per month off their rent.

Did you know there are no HUD apartments in NWA? Where do families go when the head of the household loses his or her job? HUD is supposed to help people with transitions like that but the only place you can go in NWA are area churches and places like Helping Hands in Bentonville.

That is a bit odd. Especially when home prices just keep going up. It seems to me that some wages seem to remain more closely tied to the rest of the state where home prices and such are much cheaper.

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Did you know there are no HUD apartments in NWA? Where do families go when the head of the household loses his or her job? HUD is supposed to help people with transitions like that but the only place you can go in NWA are area churches and places like Helping Hands in Bentonville.

I have to ask, what is a HUD Apartment?

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I have to ask, what is a HUD Apartment?

HUD is the Housing and Urban Development branch of the Federal government. They regulate low-income housing and work with local housing authorities to make sure there is adequate low-income housing. HUD also helps people locate single family homes for sale and assists low-income home buyers with purchasing a home. Please forgive me if you already knew that.

HUD Apartments are multi-family apartment complexes that are available for low-income people who need a temporary boost to get them on their feet. Leases are usually limited to 6 months so people can't take advantage of the system. But, 6 months of low rent based on income and no utility bills makes a big difference to people trying to save up enough money to move into their own home.

HUD Apartments are not Public Housing and they are not slums. When I lived in California I was paying $900 per month for a 1 bedroom apartment in a very nice apartment community. HUD Apartments opened right across the street and they were just as nice as mine, just without all the amenities.

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HUD is the Housing and Urban Development branch of the Federal government. They regulate low-income housing and work with local housing authorities to make sure there is adequate low-income housing. HUD also helps people locate single family homes for sale and assists low-income home buyers with purchasing a home. Please forgive me if you already knew that.

HUD Apartments are multi-family apartment complexes that are available for low-income people who need a temporary boost to get them on their feet. Leases are usually limited to 6 months so people can't take advantage of the system. But, 6 months of low rent based on income and no utility bills makes a big difference to people trying to save up enough money to move into their own home.

HUD Apartments are not Public Housing and they are not slums. When I lived in California I was paying $900 per month for a 1 bedroom apartment in a very nice apartment community. HUD Apartments opened right across the street and they were just as nice as mine, just without all the amenities.

I wonder why we don't have any then. Could it be because the cities are hesitant to have them because of negative stereotypes? Ironically one of Fayetteville's tallest buildings is a low income housing building. I don't know the name of it but it's not too far away from the Fayetteville Public Library.

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I wonder why we don't have any then. Could it be because the cities are hesitant to have them because of negative stereotypes? Ironically one of Fayetteville's tallest buildings is a low income housing building. I don't know the name of it but it's not too far away from the Fayetteville Public Library.

The name of the building is the Hillcrest Towers by the way.

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I wonder why we don't have any then. Could it be because the cities are hesitant to have them because of negative stereotypes? Ironically one of Fayetteville's tallest buildings is a low income housing building. I don't know the name of it but it's not too far away from the Fayetteville Public Library.

I'll look into low-income housing in Fayetteville but I do believe Fayetteville does have more low-income housing than the rest of NWA. Just because we don't have HUD each city does have a housing authority. The only problem is when the housing authority doesn't work closely with HUD to make sure there is adequate low-income housing.

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