Rising Bay Area Housing Prices Push Poverty to Suburbs

Source: San Francisco Chronicle

Like other metropolitan centers across the nation, the San Francisco Bay Area has seen housing prices soar as a result of gentrification and urban revitalization.This economic revival has also pushed poorer residents into suburbs that lack robust social services.

According to the San Francisco Chronicle, these people have moved to cities in East Contra Costa County, including Antioch, Pittsburgh, and Bay Point, where housing remains affordable. Unfortunately, Bay Area organizations dedicated to helping the poor are well-established in Oakland and Richmond, where the historically high levels of poverty are on the decline, but not in East Contra Costa which was once predominantly middle class.

This shift in poverty geographically mirrors the region’s shifts in diversity. Since 2000, Oakland, Richmond, Berkeley, and San Francisco have all seen a decline in the numbers of African American and Latino residents, while East Contra Costa.has seen significant growth in these populations.

Read full story at: San Francisco Chronicle

Justice & Poverty, News
Justice & Poverty, News