"Near Poor" Struggling Just Above Poverty Startle the Census

Friday 18 November 2011

by: Jason DeParle, Robert Gebeloff and Sabrina Tavernise, The New York Times News Service | Report 

 

Washington - They drive cars, but seldom new ones. They earn paychecks, but not big ones. Many own homes. Most pay taxes. Half are married, and nearly half live in the suburbs. None are poor, but many describe themselves as barely scraping by.

Down but not quite out, these Americans form a diverse group sometimes called “near poor” and sometimes simply overlooked — and a new count suggests they are far more numerous than previously understood.