According to a new United Way report, 49% of Lubbock County households are financially insecure. That includes 19% below the poverty line and another 30% living paycheck-to-paycheck with nothing left over—otherwise known as the “hope the fridge light bill comes due after payday” lifestyle.
United Way calls this ALICE: Assets Limited, Income Constrained, Employed. Translation: you’re working, but you’re still broke. For a dual-income family with two kids, the “survival budget” in Lubbock clocks in at $81,204 a year. Meanwhile, 70% of Texas’ top jobs pay less than $20 an hour, which means you can “survive” here if you define survival as choosing between groceries or football camp.
The report also shows the predictable disparities: 81% of single moms in Lubbock can’t afford basics, 57% of Black households and 52% of Hispanic households fall below the ALICE threshold, and the rest of us are just one flat tire away from financial ruin. But don’t worry—city leaders are busy arguing about drag shows and brick streets, so relief is surely on the way.
Guess “Lubbock: Live. Play. Prosper.” only applies if your definition of prosper is not overdrafting your checking account.
