What is this shutdown supposed to accomplish…
Starting Friday, the government shutdown will enter its third week (currently it’s on its 20th day). While both sides continue to stick to their guns, it remains uncertain if federal workers will be paid.
This could spell problems for more than 13,000 workers that call Arkansas home.
According to the Office of Personnel Management (OPM), 13,149 federal workers in the Natural State face another week without work, and many will continue to struggle to get by without a paycheck.
These families will have to figure out how to make ends meet in a time where so few families have extra income set aside.
Wesley Brown over at Talk Business and Politics also notes that this shutdown will affect these families’ ability to pay their mortgages, putting them at further risk.
A new report by Seattle-based Zillow says the effects of the federal government shutdown on the housing market are wide-ranging and personal – putting thousands of unpaid workers nearly $438 million in arrears on their monthly mortgage or rent.
According to recent analysis by the West Coast real estate consulting and research firm, about 800,000 federal workers that aren’t being paid due to the federal shutdown still must find ways to pay for their housing as the work furlough heads into its third week.
Zillow estimates that federal employees who are not being paid during the shutdown and own their homes pay about $249 million in monthly mortgage payments. An analysis also found that renters within that group pay about $189 million for housing each month. Read more of Wesley’s shutdown coverage here >>>