Faced with the unstoppable displacement trend of the poorest in some locations in New York, the rent increases and the crippling affordable housing crisis, that intersects with the increase in the elderly population in the Big Apple, there are hopeless scenarios and concrete about the limited possibilities that working class populations, who in a few years will become older adults, can remain in their neighborhoods.
He Puerto Rican lawyer Ariel Velez is 55 years old, of which almost all have lived in the Big Apple. In recent decades, he has dedicated himself to representing families who must face the agony of evictions. A trend that is growing at a silent pace in the poorest neighborhoods of the Bronx.
“The big problem I see is where the people who are going to retire in the coming years and aspire to live solely on that income will live in the future, in a city where the real estate market skyrockets and becomes almost exclusive.” for those with very high incomes”, he points out.
Ariel assures that personally, he has plans to face a dignified old age. But she admits that she is hurt by the thought that thousands and thousands of people of her generation are unclear about what will happen to them if she continues the accelerated pace of gentrification in all New York City neighborhoods. That is, the renovation and modernization of residential buildings, which expels residents who must face rent increases of hundreds of dollars.
In that account, it enters a much more dangerous line, the thousands of undocumented immigrants who are not even touched by certain Social Security benefits, and they already enter the life cycle of less productive force.
In Hispanic neighborhoods, everything is worse
The complex issue of housing in the Big Apple becomes more manageable for seniors who live in the Single Public Housing Authority (NYCHA) Complexes or rent-stabilized or controlled apartments. Those who live in units of the free real estate market, Its stability is always hanging by a thread.
It is already clear how Hispanic majority neighborhoods such as Washington Heights and Inwood, in Upper Manhattan, in the last decade, disproportionate rent increases continue to issue “eviction letters” to families who must opt for cheaper units in the South Bronx or at the extreme of going to neighboring states.
Likewise, new statistical data collected from January 2023 to date, show that the wave of eviction procedures “moved” to La Salsa Countyas clearly specified by the organization Eviction Lab: In towns in the east of the Bronx such as Jerome Park, with 75% of the Hispanic population, there are 3,479 eviction demands.
Likewise in Morris Heights, with 66.75% Latino residentsare recorded in this period of time 4,167 cases of evictions, meaning one of the highest rates in the city.
History repeats itself in Queens. Specifically in the 11368 zip code of Corona, a town made up of 74.14% Latino families, in which a historical peak of 1,621 cases of evictions is recorded.
More clearly the Urban Future Center, found that New Yorkers aged 65 and older accounted for 16.2 percent of the city’s population in 2021up from 12.3 percent in 2011.
And precisely everything indicates an increase in immigrant seniorsbelow the poverty line in localities of El Bronx, Queens y Brooklyn. And it is not difficult to conclude that the panorama of the appearance of affordable housing will not even enter the realm of optimism, at least in the immediate future, for millions of people between 55 and 60 years old, who are on the verge of starting the path towards their retirement.
““Now they’re taking us out of the Bronx.”
The Dominican Teresa Rosario, 62 years old, He says that since he arrived in New York in the 70s he had lived in Inwood. The building where he resided was sold to another ‘landlord’. The new landlord raised the rent before the pandemic and she was forced to move to Highbridge in the Bronx. Last year there he also received notices of a “reasonable adjustment” of $200, for the renewal of the lease.
“I was able to face that increase, because I still work and my children help me. But what will happen in the future when I want to retire and my children have their commitments?. In fact, they are already thinking about going to other states, because only the rich can live with dignity here. With the benefits of a retirement, “It is very difficult to think that you can rent an apartment, even here in the Bronx,” shared the islander.
This county has the highest proportion of Latino seniors born throughout the state. This group comprises 41% of the elderly in the Bronx.
The population of older immigrants residing in La Salsa County increased 30% during the last decade. While the number of older adults born in the country increased by 39%.
Given these unclear perspectives on the availability of affordable housing, even for young professionals, The outlook looks much darker for older adults and for people who are aging and waiting for retirement.only under the country’s social security benefit numbers.
The evictions They affect the poorest neighborhoods and communities of color, but no map clearly shows how older adults face this trauma and violent situations, What is behind a notification, where there is nothing left but to abandon a home.
Pay rent or medicine?
In this sense, Angel Santini, Vice President of Special Projects at Acacia Network an organization that for more than 50 years has offered services to older adults in the Big Apple, observes that with more acuity after the pandemic, it must listen to the testimonies of elderly people who must choose between pay rent or take care of your medical needs.
“It is a very vulnerable group, that it is difficult for you to balance your budget, when they receive a notice of a rent increase, even if it is a low percentage. We are increasingly seeing how our seniors, “They are moving out of New York.”Santini explained.
The waiting lists for those “low rent” complexes are endless. Literally a person’s life can go away, waiting for the availability of an apartment of this type.
“Fortunately we have a wide network of centers and a range of fully integrated, bilingual and culturally competent community servicesso that this population can educate themselves, find information through workshops, make financial decisions, and also avoid scams and are educated so that they can save money by participating in some programs”Santini highlighted.
“I die here”
Despite a panorama that in general seems bleak, with its particularities, others see it with optimism. The Puerto Rican retiree, Sabrina González, 65, He points out that he grew up in Harlem. Although his children insisted during the pandemic that she move with them to the city of Orlando in Florida, she shares that the time was there, “she almost died of boredom.”
“As complicated, expensive and dangerous as it may seem, it is very hard when you get used to living in your neighborhood in New York and you have to leave. Here you walk, you have everything nearby, your warehouse on the corner, there are services, there are help centers, there are programs, there is attention. “I’m dying here, whatever and wherever,” concludes Sabrina, who lives in a NYCHA apartment.
Two facts about older adults:
- 1.373.495 People aged 65 and older currently live in the Big Apple.
- 32% increase in all NYC counties the number of older adults in the last decade, according to a report updated in 2023 by the Center for an Urban Future.
There are resources:
- Acacia Network and its affiliated organizations have been committed to improving the quality of life and well-being for Latino communities in the United States, through integrated health and housing programsand innovative programming in the areas of education, workforce development, art and culture, among other initiatives.
- Los Acacia Network community-based services They have an integrated, bilingual and culturally competent approach. For more information visit: www.acacianetwork.org
- If you would like information about any of the senior protection programs in New York City, please call Aging Connect al 212-AGING-NYC (212-244-6469)
2024-02-19 11:47:00
#poor #older #adults #Big #Apple #live #accelerated #pace #rising #incomes #Journal
