San Fran: Tourists Shocked By What They See, 'Am I In The Bad Part Of Town?'

[appalachiablue]

16. PBS Newshour has done a couple features & I've seen a FEW articles

on the 'vehicle neighborhoods,' but not the full extent of homelessness and misery featured in this article on SF.

The few 'light' stories I've seen covered former middle class couples mainly in their 50s, 60s, and others who live in their cars particularly since the 2008 financial crisis caused millions to lose jobs and homes. AND due to the rising cost of housing and essentials as you say. The locale was San Diego or Seattle I'm sure. A lot of these folks never recovered, esp. ones 50+, largely unemployable at that age.
One report focused on local cab drivers who pick up nicely dressed couples at decent grocery stores waiting with their food bags, and then drive them 'back home' to their vehicle neighborhood.

In the southwest US older, retired folks live in RV communities for various reasons and to be mobile. If lucky, some get jobs to work 'seasonally' at summer festivals and fairs from employers eager to hire seniors to work for less.

This lack of affordable housing, a lot driven by very wealthy investors including foreign, buying property and real estate, and families working & living in CARS is unbelievable! So much for the 'American Dream.' I visited Sea, LA, San Fran and San Diego where F & F settled and did pretty well, and it was before the big Silicon Valley tech boom, and rapidly rising costs since c. 2000.

>Bloomberg 2018, 'Homelessness Tragedy'..*TOP Three Homelessness Cities- Los Angeles, San Francisco, Seattle*
https://www.bloomberg.com/view/articles/2018-05-21/ending-homelessness-is-a-job-for-the-federal-government