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Marketplace Money for Friday, October 5, 2012
Oct 5, 2012

Marketplace Money for Friday, October 5, 2012

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How do you decide what to do with your money when you have very little? In a special report from our Wealth and Poverty Desk and KPBS in San Diego, we look at the tough choices faced by families living in poverty. For poor people in the U.S., every single penny counts. Good choices about how to spend those pennies can lead to a path out of poverty. Bad choices can send them spiraling downward. We talk with a woman who's worked and saved enough to buy her own house, a family that's counting change picked up on the sidewalk, and a young man who will be the first in his family to go to college. Plus, stories on finding the funny in frugal, driving while poor, and poverty simulation.

Segments From this episode

Comedian puts the funny in frugality

Oct 5, 2012
Comedian Juston McKinney grew up poor. Many of his jokes have to do with being a poor kid and how living middle class now hasn't solved all of his problems.
Comedian Juston McKinney
Courtesy Juston McKinney

A car can transport people out of poverty

Oct 5, 2012
When you're poor, car trouble can spiral out of control -- but for those without access to public transportation, a car is essential.

Falling into poverty: A family’s story

Oct 5, 2012
Clifford Fleischbein and DeeDee Varner used to make $250,000 a year. They're now living just above the poverty line in San Diego.

Rich and poor in San Diego speak out on wealth gap

Oct 5, 2012
Residents of San Diego's wealthiest and poorest neighborhoods reflect on opportunity, responsibility and the American Dream.

Is personal responsibility the key to ending poverty?

Oct 5, 2012
Two takes from experts on both sides of the political spectrum on why people are poor and what they can do about it.

The psychology of poverty

Oct 5, 2012
One Harvard professor says being poor not only impacts people financially, but mentally as well

Could you live off of $438 a week?

Oct 5, 2012
The poverty threshold for a family of four was $22,811 last year according to Census data. Do you think you could survive on just $1,900 per month? Try our interactive poverty simulation to find out.

Tough Choices: How the poor spend money

Oct 5, 2012
Three families living around the poverty line in San Diego tell Marketplace Money what it means to spend money when you don't have a whole lot of it.
Spencer Platt/Getty Images

How do you decide what to do with your money when you have very little? In a special report from our Wealth and Poverty Desk and KPBS in San Diego, we look at the tough choices faced by families living in poverty. For poor people in the U.S., every single penny counts. Good choices about how to spend those pennies can lead to a path out of poverty. Bad choices can send them spiraling downward. We talk with a woman who’s worked and saved enough to buy her own house, a family that’s counting change picked up on the sidewalk, and a young man who will be the first in his family to go to college. Plus, stories on finding the funny in frugal, driving while poor, and poverty simulation.