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Priced out of traditional housing, more Americans are living in RVs

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73 points bikenaga | 2 comments | 22 Sep 25 22:33 UTC | HN request time: 0s | source
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nradov ◴[23 Sep 25 00:07 UTC] No.45341251[source]▶
It's a sad situation and really shows our collective failure to build enough housing. But in articles about the financial struggles of single parents, why do journalists frequently not report anything about child support payments? The reader is left to wonder whether the father of the Stitt children is paying his share, or dead, or a deadbeat. In a number of cases I know about the custodial parent didn't even bother to pursue a legal support order. Even a few hundred dollars per month can make a huge difference in paying rent. I understand that navigating the legal system is difficult and many single parents are overwhelmed, but most counties have social workers or legal aid agencies that will help with court filings and collections.
replies(2): >>45341386 #>>45341390 #
999900000999 ◴[23 Sep 25 00:24 UTC] No.45341386[source]▶
Alright.

This is just a hypothetical story.

Sarah has 2 kids with her ex husband Bill. Everytime Sarah mentions child support Bill talks about pursuing joint custody.

Bill has no intention of actually following though, but he knows fighting in court is going to very expensive and difficult for Sarah.

Sarah drops it. Often filing for child support involves a whole lot of BS. Bill might just be a wacko she'd rather not deal with anymore.

After all, they aren't together for a reason.

I know my dad kicked me out at 15 and didn't give me a dime until I was like 20, and that was about 300$ or 400$ tops.

He wasn't going to spot me rent money during my second eviction.

Honest to God, I was grateful he just left me alone for the most part. He still lived in this fantasy land were you can kick you kid out and expect them to do well in school.

No I'm not college bound, yes my GPA was like a 1.7 when I graduated high school.

Thank you Brendan Eich, thank you for JavaScript, without that magical programing language I wouldn't be where I am now.

I guess I wasn't smart enough for C++, but I've made great money in JavaScript and other higher level languages for a long time.

Anyway, the woman who starts the story has her reasons.

replies(1): >>45341570 #
nradov ◴[23 Sep 25 00:49 UTC] No.45341570[source]▶
Right, I get that dealing with family law issues can be extremely difficult — especially when irrational or abusive people are involved. But at some point custodial parents need to step up and do what's necessary to collect the money owed to their children even though it's a painful process. It sucks and it's unfair but usually better than letting the children become homeless.

The subject of the story might have her reasons (the father could be dead for all we know) and I wouldn't presume to criticize her based on such a limited set of facts. My criticism of the journalists is that they just leave that part out. It's sloppy writing and leaves the reader wondering what else they missed? Like they can ask for the intimate details of the family's financial history and living situation but they can't ask about child support? It makes no sense.

replies(2): >>45341789 #>>45349325 #
alistairSH ◴[23 Sep 25 16:31 UTC] No.45349325[source]▶
at some point custodial parents need to step up and do what's necessary to collect the money owed to their children even though it's a painful process

Can't squeeze blood out of a rock.

I've seen cases where the non-custodial parent just quit their job and moved every time the custodial parent attempted to collect. Or, just flat our refused to earn any income - they literally preferred to be impoverished to assisting in child-rearing expenses.

At some point, it's overall easier to pretend that non-custodial parent doesn't exist and move on with your life.

replies(1): >>45356060 #
nradov ◴[24 Sep 25 03:43 UTC] No.45356060[source]▶
That's a lot of speculation. We don't who know whether any of those circumstances applied in this particular case because the journalist was too lazy to include key facts in the story.
replies(1): >>45360972 #
1. alistairSH ◴[24 Sep 25 14:31 UTC] No.45360972{3}[source]▶
It's not speculation, it literally happened to a family member.

You're the one speculating that there's always a route to collecting support or that the custodial parent hasn't bothered. :shrug:

replies(1): >>45375847 #
2. nradov ◴[25 Sep 25 17:21 UTC] No.45375847[source]▶
I never claimed that there's always a route to collecting support so quit lying and trying to put words in my mouth. My claim is that the article is badly written because it omitted relevant details about support. What happened to your family member is irrelevant to this article.