TOLEDO, Ohio — With inflation on the rise attorneys who help consumers say they are getting more clients concerned with debt. Wages just aren't keeping up with bills for many people, they said.
"We see clients who struggle clients who are struggling with all different issues surrounding consuming and debt," said Maggie Humphrey, director of community engagement for the Toledo Bar Association. "And our goal is to get our attorneys out in the community to give them some guidance on where they can go next."
From September, 2021, through August, 2022, inflation in Ohio was 8.7% . That means people here are paying about $661 more a month on everyday living expenses, including gas cleaning supplies and food.
Officials with SeaGate Food Bank, which serves 30,000 people each month in Lucas County, said more must be done to help people make ends meet.
"The need has increased due to inflation because everyone's trying to pay their bills and food is usually the last things on the list to buy," said Mindy Wrapp, Seagate Food Bank executive director. "So, a lot of times people will find at the end of the month - and the end of the week - that they don't have enough money for food."
Wrapp said she is seeing more and more senior citizens struggling.
"So, we do find seniors getting hit hard because seniors already have a fixed income but that's not going up, but inflation's going up," Wrapp said.
Lucas County libraries have also noticed inflation affecting the community and have partnered with the Ohio Justice Bus and the Lucas County Law Library to provide free consumer counseling.
Humphrey said that along with helping clients with information about food banks and free community resourses, attorneys also give budgeting advice.
Consumer attorney Tom Cafferty advised the community to carefully track expenses and make a budget.
"Write down everything that you spend because if you look at what your current budget is and prioritize the things you can't do away with such as food and gasoline," Cafferty said. "Prioritize the necessities and see if there are some unnecessary expenses that you can cut off."
This year the average Ohio household is expected to spend $7,000 more on goods and services than they did last year. Consumer law experts suggest budgeting and prioritizing is the first step to combating inflation this year.
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