Summary
A growing number of Americans are seeking shelter in budget motels due to rising rents and home prices, with families experiencing cramped, unstable living conditions.
In New York’s Hudson Valley, over 550 families with children lived in motels in 2023, a 21% increase from 2018.
High costs, safety concerns, and limited housing options make escaping this cycle difficult.
Advocacy groups warn motels are an unsustainable solution as housing costs outpace wages, while waitlists for subsidized housing and vouchers remain long.
I stayed in one years ago after moving to a new city and it surprised me to see a school bus stop and pick up kids living there.
I grew up in the rural midwest in the 90s and every year our school bus would pick several kids up from the local motel. Except they were always different kids, because they were Mexican families who were working temporary jobs, I assume related to potato farming or sugarbeets but I never really knew. Anyway it was often 2-3 kids coming out of each room so families of 4-5 to a single motel room. And then they’d get on a school bus and spend all day getting bullied by racist redneck white kids.