June survey shows COVID-19 effect

Pandemic continues to hit low- and moderate-income communities hard
July 07, 2020 |

Pandemic continues to hit low- and moderate-income communities hard

The 2020 pandemic continues to have profound effects on people, including here in the Federal Reserve’s Tenth District. A new report, “Perspectives from Main Street: The Impact of COVID-19 on Low- to Moderate-Income Communities and the Entities Serving Them,” spotlights the challenges low- to moderate-income (LMI) communities are facing across the nation.

It reflects responses of a June survey of nonprofits, financial institutions, government agencies and other organizations serving LMI U.S. communities — whether rural, urban or suburban. Key findings include:

  • Sixty percent of respondents indicated COVID-19 was significantly disrupting economic conditions in the communities they serve and expect the recovery to be difficult.
  • The most frequently cited effects of COVID-19 were income loss, job loss and unemployment.
  • Nearly half indicated it will take more than 12 months for the communities and people they serve to return to economic conditions they were experiencing prior to the pandemic’s disruption.  

This nationwide survey will continue to be fielded in 2020, with findings regularly updated.