Study Reveals Decrease in ‘Survival’ Budget Support in the Tri-County Area Despite Wage Growth

NORTH CHARLESTON, S.C. – Study Reveals Decrease in ‘Survival’ Budget Support in the Tri-County Area Despite Wage Growth

A recent study conducted by Trident United Way has raised concerns by illustrating that despite wage growth, large families in the Tri-County area are struggling within their “survival budgets”. The report analyzed several thousand households across the state of South Carolina from 2021 to 2022.

Largest Increase in Cost of Living

The report highlighted that communities in the Tri-County area have witnessed some of the largest increases in cost of living within the state. Despite observing an increase in wages and earnings, the study found that these increases did not correspond to the rising price points.

Trident United Way CEO DJ Hampton expressed sympathy. “It’s tough. People who have worked hard really find they can’t now feed their kids or they’re having to make tough financial decisions every day, often with less than $500 in savings,” he says.

Living Paycheck to Paycheck

The study revealed that an alarming 39%, or 121,809 homes, live paycheck to paycheck. Further dissection of these numbers shows that 35,898 of these homes are under the Federal Poverty Level, while 95,911 are categorized as asset-limited, income-constrained, employed, or ALICE – earning above the national level but insufficient to survive in the current economy.

Charleston County’s Survival Budget

According to Trident United Way, in Charleston County, a family of four needs to earn more than $89,000 to afford basic necessities such as housing, food, utilities, childcare, taxes, and a smartphone plan. This estimation, however, does not factor in the cost of school supplies, student loan payments, dining, travel, and additional activities or expenses. For a family of four with an infant and preschooler, the basic cost of living saw a surge from $70,716 to $89,004 within a single year.

Racial Disparities

The study further underscored financial hardship with racial disparities, noting that 62% of Black and 53% of Hispanic households across the state are living within the ALICE threshold. In contrast, only 14% of ALICE households and 36% of those living below the federal level participated in SNAP food assistance benefits last year.

Trident United Way’s Findings

Trident United Way stated that this year’s evidence is consistent with a trend that has been in place for over a decade. This implies that current strategies to combat financial hardship are failing to generate the desired results.

“Wages are up, which is great, where employers and others are really working hard to have those families able to make the ends meet,” Hampton says. “The challenge is inflation, as well as expiration of benefits. this is really a wake-up call for the community to come together and support these families for a thriving Charleston 10, 15 and 20 years from now.”