… Bureau began collecting the data during World War II.

The article said:

“The national poverty rate also hit its highest level since 1997, jumping to 13.2 percent in 2008 from 12.5 percent in 2007. The increase meant that 39.8 million people lived below the poverty line, the most since 1960. That’s up from 37.3 million in 2007. For children, the poverty rate hit 19 percent, or 14.1 million youngsters in 2008. That means 35.3 percent of the nation’s poor in 2008 were under age …

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The recession has been hard on retirees for a number of different reasons, but at least they have a good option to turn to.

According to an article in Newsweek , the “over-55 crowd” is now the most likely to file for bankruptcy .  A confluence of events lead to this, and here are some of the causes: they are helping their kids and grandchildren, their homes have dropped in value, …

According to an article in the Star-Telegram, many low-income residents had to receive medical treatment after thousands of people pushed and shoved for the opportunity to apply for the Homelessness Prevention and Rapid Re-Housing program which will provide grants of up to $3,000 for homeless and low-income individuals.

The article said:

“Scuffles erupted as several thousand Detroit …

Tags: Detroit foreclosure Homelessness Poverty

… eligible for assistance – individuals and families who earn less than 125 percent of the federal poverty level, now set at $27,564 a year for a family of four.”

Many Americans facing foreclosure, eviction and even bankruptcy are often turning to Legal Aid centers for help; but assistance may not be available because of the overload. For those Americans considering bankruptcy, many hesitate because of fees they may not be able to afford especially if they’ve experienced a recent job …

… would never exceed 15 percent of any income above about $16,000 a year (or 150 percent of the poverty level). Those who earn less than $16,000 would not have to make any monthly payments.”

Borrowers who sign-up for this program should be cautious because the overall cost of the loan may increase due to accruing interest and you still may not have a balance to forgive after 25 years.  Do the math to make sure that you will benefit from this program before you apply. You can also visit …

… to income. The formula is complicated…[but] Basically, if you earn under 150 percent of the poverty level, you would pay nothing. Most who qualify will pay less than 10 percent of their total income for their loans. After 25 years of payments, any remaining debt is forgiven.

They have also expanded the Public Service Loan Forgiveness program which now includes almost any job in government service, nonprofits or teaching. Any student loan debtor who works in a qualifying job and pays …

… low-income Texans weatherize their homes. Anyone who does not make more than 200% of the federal poverty level would qualify for a $6,500 home weatherization subsidy. The White House also says that the energy efficient section of the stimulus alone will create 87,000 jobs.

The article said:

Aside from money for low-income weatherization, Texas also gets around $219 million for rebates to all consumers on energy audits or upgrades, to promote Energy Star appliances and for efficiency …

… the percentage of Texans without health care insurance, the lack of affordable housing and high poverty rates a “recipe for disaster. At the other end of the scale are people who are way over their heads in houses they can’t afford,” Martin said. “When they lose their jobs or have a health care crisis, they’re out on the street and they take their kids with them.”

The rising rate of child homelessness in Texas is just another symptom of the foreclosure crisis and will have …

… the bankruptcy filing fee for individual debtors if the debtor’s income is less than 150% of the poverty line in their state of residence. Some debtors whose income is above this limit may be able to pay a reduced bankruptcy filing fee. When a debtor files for Chapter 7 bankruptcy he/she must submit the petition with an application for this "fee waiver" program. Filing for this waiver shouldn’t delay the bankruptcy procedures because according to the bankruptcy law, the court …