CINCINNATI — The partial government shutdown isn't just affecting federal employees who missed their payday Friday.
In Northern Kentucky, a homeowner is struggling to make ends meet because the person she's selling the property to is a government employee who didn't receive her paycheck.
Jerry George and his wife, who's a government employee, have a land contract to buy the property from his sister-in-law, Deanna Damon.
"We're cutting back on our heating, lowering it down, anything we can eliminate, we're trying to do," George said.
George — who's disabled — and his wife — who has diabetes — live paycheck to paycheck. He said their medical bills are stacking up, making this month without pay extra hard on them.
That also means it'll be tough for them to pay Damon for the home they live in.
"She's the one that holds the mortgage for us," George said. "We work with her and she tries to work with us."
Damon said she's going to cover the costs for the property this month.
"I'm lenient. She's my sister, they're in a rough patch," she said. "My husband and I are doing anything we can to help them, but I think it's hard on her."
Damon and her husband have another rental property. She said that, if their other tenants were also government employees, it "could be disastrous."
In the meantime, George has been looking for other ways to save and make money, so he and his wife have been selling items from around the house on eBay and Facebook.
"Been stressful for her, I know also, and myself too, because we depend on each other and our incomes," he said. "I've got a lot of medical issues."
George said he hopes the end to the shutdown is near.
"I think they need to do whatever they need to do to settle it and get people back to work," he said.
