SAN DIEGO (KGTV) — Between gas and rent, the cost of living in San Diego continues to rise, leaving some residents struggling to keep up.
In Logan Heights, a local nonprofit says the need for services is increasing, with seniors at the center of the crisis.
A fall last year left San Diego resident Brenda Scales with more than just injuries. Medical bills pushed her finances to the edge.
"After paying my, um, bill, for my hospital bills, I couldn't keep up with my rent," Scales said.
Scales turned to 2-1-1, which connected her to the Logan Heights Community Development Corporation. The organization connects residents with resources, including financial solutions.
"When you fall down, and you feel like you've fallen all the way to the bottom and lost everything that you have. It's hard to try to fix that, and you'd, if you don't know where to go," Scales said.
"It is a lot of resources, and you have to put pride aside sometimes and go use them," Scales said.
The nonprofit says stories like hers are becoming more common. In the past year, they have seen a noticeable increase in people walking through their doors, many of them seniors living on fixed incomes.
"If costs increase like rent, gas prices, they have a harder time in spending money on those things because there's not a way for them to increase their income," Director of Economic Development William Burties said.
For many, the biggest challenge is keeping up with rent.
"We've been helping a lot of clients who have been coming in and their income is here, and their rent is here, and it didn't start off that way," Burties said.
The organization helps clients rework their budgets, cut back on expenses, and find ways to stay afloat. With prices still climbing, they expect the need to keep up as well.
"We are planning on helping more families that are in need, and we're focusing on making sure we provide the right resources and connections for them," Burties said.
Burties said the best way the community can help is by pointing someone in need in their direction.
This story was reported on-air by a journalist and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.
