Too rich for assistance, too poor to get by: A single mom's struggle to afford life in New York City

Janice Chung for BI

Massiel Lugo hit the New York lottery — and it's why she can afford to stay in the city she grew up in.

The 33-year-old single mother of two took over her aunt's lease in Jackson Heights, Queens, when her second child was born. Moving into the two-bedroom was only possible because her aunt, also a single mother, left the city for a more affordable life in Georgia.

"I remember watching her struggle a lot, and then she could no longer do it on her own, and she just got up and left," Lugo said.