California’s sky-high prices are forcing some into desperate measures — including living in parking lots, Buddhist communes and relying on gym memberships just to shower.
Soaring housing costs and stubborn inflation are squeezing Americans harder than ever, and one San Diego woman says she had to get creative simply to survive.
The latest Consumer Price Index report from the Bureau of Labor Statistics found rent and lodging costs jumped 0.6% in April, the biggest spike in three years.
At the same time, Californians are also getting hammered at the pump, with regular unleaded averaging a jaw-dropping $6.15 a gallon, the highest price in the nation.
After relocating from New York to San Diego, Michelle Finlon said she wound up homeless for three years as the crushing cost of living swallowed her finances whole.
She said surviving California’s costs required unconventional solutions and support from unlikely places.
Today, she works with HEAL, Homeless-Experienced Advocacy and Leadership, a program operated through the San Diego Housing Federation, Finlon says climbing out of homelessness took far more than just landing a paycheck.
“You need a home,” Finlon told ABC 10. “You need somewhere to go to at the end of the day where you feel safe, where you can feel secure.”
One arrangement that helped stabilize her regain stability was living with a Buddhist community at the Sweetwater Zen Center.
Finlon also sought help through religious organizations during some of her hardest moments.
“I found a Jewish program where I could do safe parking,” Finlon said.
As California’s inflation rate surged to a brutal 3.8% in April, many residents are finding the pressure of paying for basic necessities colliding with mounting mental health struggles.
For Finlon, even something as simple as a gym membership became essential for survival on the streets.“Gym memberships are huge for showers, for stability, for parking. That’s huge for your health,” Finlon said.
In September, she launched her LLC, Sacrosanct Solutions, offering astrological readings, tarot readings, yoga, craniosacral therapy, meditation, massages, spell work and reiki.
