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A Fact Sheet About Poverty in Santa Cruz County
27,059 Santa Cruz County residents have an income below the US Poverty Guidelines ($22,050 for a family of four)
The year 2000 percentage of County residents living in poverty was 11.9%, a 1.2% increase since 1990. The U.S. Census poverty estimate for 2003 was 11.2%
Poverty rates are highest for Hispanic/Latinos (18.7%) & African Americans (22.8%) and lowest for Caucasians (8.4%)
Hispanic/Latino households with children under age 18 in Santa Cruz County comprise 36% of those living at or below poverty
Children constitute the highest poverty rate (19%) in Santa Cruz County while seniors over 65 have the lowest rate (6.3%) of poverty
The percentage of Santa Cruz County youth living in poverty is 19.5%, and 22.8% of Latino youth live in poverty compared to 6.1% of white youth
People are leaving Santa Cruz County. The population dropped by 4,018 between 2000 and 2003, possibly because of high housing costs
Housing costs in Santa Cruz County are not only among the most expensive, but are also among the least affordable in the nation
Last year, 51% of all county households paid half their income on housing
Of county residents earning less than $35,000, 70% pay half of their income on housing
Two Santa Cruz County cities, Watsonville and Capitola, have median household incomes, ($37,617 and $46,048 respectively) that are lower than the rest of the state ($47,493)
Immigrants are the poorest category of county residents; and, there are significant legal barriers that prevent their escape from poverty
Nearly half of all female-headed households with children in Watsonville live in poverty
There is a wide wage disparity in Santa Cruz County between men and women: men earn $46,291 and women earn $33,514 for comparable work
Studies show that to be self-sufficient in Santa Cruz County, a family of three needs an hourly wage between $21.84 - $28.51 per hour (California’s minimum wage rate is $7.50 per hour)