Photos show what it's like for Silicon Valley's 'working homeless,' who live down the street from tech giants

Melia RobinsonDec 6, 2017, 21:33 IST

In this photo taken Oct. 5, 2017, a man skates past a row of RVs where people live and sleep in the heart of silicon valley in Mountain View, Calif. Apartments across the street start at over $3,000 a month. The booming economy along the West Coast has led to an historic shortage of affordable housing and has upended the stereotypical view of people out on the streets. Reporting by The Associated Press finds that many of them are employed, working as retail clerks, plumbers, janitors _ even teachers. They go to work, sleep where they can and buy gym memberships for a place to shower.Marcio Jose Sanchez/AP

In Silicon Valley - home to tech giants like Google, Facebook, and Apple - tree-lined streets are filling with tents, cots, and dilapidated RVs.

A photo series by the Associated Press shows what life is like for the area's retail clerks, plumbers, janitors - even teachers - who go to work and sleep where they can.

Silicon Valley has the highest median income in the nation. But a worsening wealth gap has caused homelessness to surge. More than 10,000 people were living without shelter across San Jose and Santa Clara Counties on any given night in 2016, though that figure is probably low.

These photos give us a glimpse of life on the streets in Silicon Valley.

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Photos show what it's like for Silicon Valley's 'working homeless,' who live down the street from tech giants