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I am a resident of Charleston, SC. I am a 23 year old college graduate with two degrees. I work two jobs and was not financially able to move out of my parents house until recently. Rent and mortgages are so expensive that I was not able to move out until my friend was able to buy her own house and she provides relatively affordable rent (affordable compared to literally anything in or around Charleston/mount pleasant/goose creek/ anywhere near my work) to me and my partner. She also would not be able to afford her mortgage by herself. She was able to save up money and buy a house, but would not be able to afford mortgage of any house without renters helping her out. We all got very lucky that we have a place that we can all afford however, this means that there are four people in one house in order to be able to afford just living. My partner and my roommates all work 9-5 jobs and I work two jobs and we still all could not afford to rent or buy anything anywhere down here. My partner was renting a house in downtown Charleston prior to this at a place that had relatively cheap rent, it was the only thing she could afford. I stayed with her most nights out of the week. This "cheap" rent apartment had dangerous living conditions: mold everywhere, doors wouldn't close all the way, plumbing water running out of the ceiling down from upstairs neighbors, windows coming off the walls and plants growing inside of them, half the stove top not working, the a/c unit would break every year during the summer (just to name a few things). The landlord would not answer his phone nor do anything about any of these issues yet my partner could not afford to go anywhere else because all other places were double or more than the price she was paying. It is ridiculous and horrid that three people who work full time could not afford to live literally anywhere without the help of each other in a place where we have lived for upwards of 8+ years. It would have been nice if my partner and I could've afforded literally anything so we could live alone, it would have been nice if my friend who bought a house could afford to pay her own mortgage and not have to rent out her rooms. This actually would be the bare minimum. The rent and the mortgages are too high. No one should not be able to afford just to live. This is ridiculous and we're all tired it it.