When Tacoma-born crooner Bing Crosby sang the hit "Brother Can You Spare a Dime" 80 years ago, ten cents equaled about a buck seventy-five today. Beginning April 3, vendors of Seattle's street newspaper, Real Change, will ask for a quarter more than that, charging two dollars a paper.

Here is the press release by Real Change Founder Timothy Harris:

It's Time for a Raise

Real Change costs $2 starting April 3rd

This April, Real Change will increase its cover price from $1 to $2, raising the amount that the vendor earns from the sale of a newspaper from $.65 to $1.40. This is the first price increase for Real Change readers since the paper started in September, 1994.

To help the vendors celebrate their raise, Real Change will hand a crisp $2 bill to every vendor that comes in when the new issue comes out on April 3rd. Vendors will begin selling the new issue upon its delivery to Real Change at 8:30 a.m.

Real Change is widely recognized as North America's leading street newspaper, and offers opportunity, social connection, and a voice to an average of 300 active vendors monthly. Real Change served a total of 814 vendors in 2012.

Real Change is a valued community news source and has received 10 first place awards from the Society of Professional Journalists, as well as the prestigious Susan Hutchison Bosch award for outstanding achievement and the Sigma Delta Chi award for feature reporting. Real Change received a total of 8 journalism awards for 2012 from the Washington Press Association and the Society of Professional Journalists.

"The bottom line is that readers love our paper and want to see our vendors succeed," said Real Change founding director Timothy Harris. "When you need to sell three papers to net enough money for a cup of coffee, it's definitely time for a raise."

Real Change will become the sixth North American street paper to raise the price to $2, following papers in Montreal, Vancouver, Denver, Chicago, and Washington, DC.

Vendors currently pay $.35 each for their paper and keep all proceeds from the dollar sale. Beginning this April, vendors will pay $.60 per copy and sell the paper for $2. The additional circulation income to Real Change will help finance plans for regional expansion to Kitsap and east King County.

Real Change will assist with vendor availability for interviews upon request.

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Timothy Harris, Executive Director, Real Change
219 1st Ave. S, Ste. 220, Seattle, WA 98104
director@realchangenews.org