Financial strain among Whatcom County families hits new high, report shows
An updated report is showing that more households than ever in Whatcom County are living with significant financial constraints.
United Way of Whatcom County measures the cost of living with its ALICE report on the working poor, which surveys the growing number of households that are “Asset-Limited, Income-Constrained, Employed,” or those who live above the federal poverty line but don’t earn enough to afford basic necessities such as housing, child care, food, transportation and health care.
These households are further financially strained because their income measures above the Federal Poverty Level, so they don’t often qualify for assistance.
While just 14% of all Whatcom County households met the federal definition of poverty, the new research shows that 31% — more than twice as many — qualified as ALICE. Whatcom County outpaced the statewide percentages on both counts.
Combined, almost half of Whatcom County’s households — 45% —fell below the ALICE Threshold of Financial Survival in 2023. That’s up from 38% in 2022.
“When we underestimate how many households are struggling financially, we underestimate what it truly takes to tackle this issue,” said United Way of Whatcom County’s President and CEO Kristi Birkeland. “Too many families and workers will be overlooked when it comes to support, left without the resources they need to increase their financial stability and set themselves up for future success. This is a huge loss — not just for ALICE, but for our entire community.”
The United Way report describes the “crux of the struggle” for ALICE families as being the gap between wages and expenses.
In 2023, a family of four in Whatcom County needed $119,076 just to cover the essentials. That’s almost four times the Federal Poverty Level of $30,000.
In 2023, 30% of workers in Washington’s 20 most common jobs lived in households that couldn’t afford basics, according to the new report. These are workers holding jobs as cooks, cashiers, fast food and counter workers, personal care aides and janitors.
Even if both parents in an ALICE household worked full time in two of Washington’s most common jobs — a personal care aide and a stock worker/order filler — “this family’s combined income still fell short of the cost of basics by $36,496,” according to an announcement about the report.
A larger percentage of Whatcom County’s youngest and oldest households face financial hardship than middle-aged households, according to the report.
In 2023, 82% of the youngest and 52% of the oldest households in Whatcom County fell below the ALICE Threshold, compared with 39% of households headed by someone age 25-44, the report shows.
Meanwhile, 84% of single female-headed households with children in Whatcom County also fell below the ALICE Threshold that year, according to the report.
Among all households below the ALICE Threshold across Washington, the report found that 75% of those that rented and 56% of those that owned were housing burdened, meaning they paid 30% or more of their income on housing costs.
