After several years of successful projects addressing food insecurity, the Junior League of Saint Paul transitioned its focus to housing stability based on feedback from community leaders and key stakeholders in the surrounding area.  An initiative entitled “Stable Housing, Thriving Communities” was launched with a targeted focus on women and children.

FACTS: 

The Minnesota Housing Partnership’s 2019 State of the State Housing Report presented the following:

• Nearly one-third of Minnesota households — equating to approximately 609,000 families — spend more than 30 percent of their income on housing. In Ramsey County this affects over 65,000 families or 48 percent of households.
• The gap between the number of available units for extremely low income (ELI – defined as earning less than 30% average median income) households — and the number of people who need them. The Twin Cities reported 109,300 ELI households in 2019, but only 36,905 housing units available to those households.
• Fair market rent for a 2-bedroom apartment in Ramsey County averaged $1,089 in 2018, while the median income renter can only afford $707 of monthly rent.
• A full-time minimum wage earner cannot afford a one-bedroom apartment in any of Minnesota’s 87 counties.