[gexla]

Work multiple jobs. Or a full time job and gig work on the side. Share rent with others. Rent a room. I believe a chunk of the flooding deaths in the NY flooding was from people living in illegal arrangements (basements setup as rental space.) People find ways as part of a story which stats don't tell.

ETA: Where there's a demand, markets open up. In the Philippines, many people live in "boarding houses" which is a small single room and shared bathroom. In one place I visited, it was a dirt floor, light bulb hanging from the ceiling and a bed which was little bigger than a cot.