Good question! I looked up the poverty line in LA specifically. And here are the results:
Persons in Family Household - Poverty Guideline (annually): 1 person - $14,580 / 2 persons - $19,720 / 3 persons - $24,860
This is a very quick look for an answer. I don’t fully understand the results.
The long and short of it is $25,000/year is over the poverty line for a single person household but barely over the poverty line for a 2 person household. It is the poverty line for a household of 3 or more people.
It is unclear how this factors in housing, and if it includes owning property and renting. A 3 person household is generally considered to be two adults and a child or dependant. Livable, depends on what you considered livable. If owning a house and starting a family is part of having a libable life, I would say they are probably not earning a livable wage.
Source: Californial Department of Public Health https://www.cdph.ca.gov/Programs/CID/DOA/Pages/OA_ADAP_Federal_Poverty_Guideline_Chart.aspx
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Just remember you are strong for sloughing through all that day in and day out! It’s very impressive!