A young Peruvian woman has recorded her living experience in Paris and posted clips online showing her tiny apartment. Natalia Vega has generated more than 50,000 followers on social media, where she describes the reality of life in the romantic city, including the enormous living costs. Her apartment, for which pays more than $500 a month, is just 97 square feet and she is forced to climb seven flights of stairs to reach it.
The apartment consists of one bed, which is situated right next to the kitchen, and a tiny bathroom. She uses her kitchen counter as a desk because there is no room for an alternative.
Several of her followers described her life there as mere survival, saying living in such cramped conditions is not worth the benefits of living in the French capital.
Paris is one of the most expensive cities in the world, and according to economists, the average cost of living rises by 3.5% per year. While Paris is exorbitant, data shows that Singapore, Zurich, Geneva, New York, and Hong Kong make up the five most costly cities in 2024.
In New York, the average monthly rent for a single person is around $3,000, rising to over $8,000 for a family of four. A report from the United Way of New York City and The Fund for the City of New York in April this year stated that around half of New Yorkers cannot afford to survive without help from the government or family members. Childcare costs have exploded, the report notes, with some moms saying they pay out more than $2,500 per month. It also claimed that wages are rising far less quickly than living costs.
Additionally, a Citizens Budget Commission survey found that growing numbers of New Yorkers rate their lives in the city as “not good” and much worse than in 2017. Only half of 6,000 Big Apple residents said they wanted to stay in the city, with many looking at alternative options.
Grace Bonilla, president of United Way NYC said, “Families are finding that between housing, between child care, transportation, it is almost impossible.”
