LOCAL STORY service] industry. That was a pay cut but more aligned with my interests and a step in the right direction toward my future goals. If I didn’t have that ability, I wouldn’t have been able to take this job and would have to be working in restaurants, miserable, but making enough to just afford Denver rent.” Now that she is living at home, Straka has decided to pursue her master’s degree. “There would be no way for me to go back to school without taking out massive loans and accumulating major debt if I was on my own.” According to Straka, there is a certain stigma attached to adults returning to live with their parents. She also notes that often, people avoid talking about the reality of balancing lowpaying jobs with the escalating cost of living in Denver. “I honestly feel embarrassment and shame around still living at home. I know it makes logical financial sense and is temporary, but it makes me feel like a failure. Like MARY STRAKA. CREDIT: CAT EVANS KURT VIERS. CREDIT: CAT EVANS THE HEAVY TOLL OF DENVER’S AFFORDABILITY CRISIS BY CAT EVANS ACCORDING TO PAYSCALE.COM, the cost of living in Denver is 12% higher than the national average. Median rent sits at $1,451 per month, while the median home price is $463,245. An estimated 9,846 people are experiencing homelessness on any given day as reported by Continuums of Care. The total number of homeless students is far higher, being an estimated 22,369. With homelessness increasing every day alongside the cost of living, the question remains how does one bridge that gap? Graduating from CU Denver with a B.S. in environmental science, 28-year-old Mary Straka has struggled with finding long-term housing in the Denver Metro area. Bouncing between different restaurant jobs while trying to find a career in her field, Straka lived with her boyfriend and his brother until they broke up. Once on her own, she was forced to return home. Shortly after, she moved into an apartment, where her lease was month-to-month. Not long after that, COVID-19 hit, and Straka once again returned home as she could not afford to exist solely on unemployment. “I don’t know what I would do if I didn’t have this option” explained Straka. “For me right now, the ability to move back home allowed me to take a new job out of the [food I failed at being a normal adult who can live on their own. I’m trying to reframe that into thinking of it as an investment in my future to have more financial and housing security.” Straka is not alone. According to Zillow, more than one in five adults nationally are either living with or returning to live with their parents to offset the lack of affordable housing, combined with low-paying wages and student debt. Kurt Viers, a 37-year-old barista from Kansas City, has been on and off the street since moving to Denver in 2008. “I survive as a roomer from place to place maintaining through luck, and circumstance, and the people I am fortunate enough to meet,” said Viers. “My current rent is about half my income, and it’s off the books, so there isn’t much room for missteps or unforeseen difficulty. I hesitate buying furniture or anything resembling permanence or potential burden.” While Viers has grown accustomed to his circumstances, he acknowledges the challenges he faces. “Living with housing insecurity takes its toll,” said Viers, “even when you have a place to put your head for the night – always vulnerable to any potential catastrophe. Hopefully, one day, 10 DENVER VOICE August 2021
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