What are the problems gentrification brings? Isn’t fixing up a neighborhood a good thing? How can gentrification stop?
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Poor neighborhoods have a higher number of people that rent homes instead of owning them. Gentrification increases property values which harms renters since they do not benefit from increased property value, they only see it raise their rent which eventually squeezes them out of the neighborhood. Owners benefit when they sell their houses or take out a home equity loan, but when they are living in them, they just see increased taxes.
Poor neighborhoods have a higher number of people that rent homes instead of owning them. Gentrification increases property values which harms renters since they do not benefit from increased property value, they only see it raise their rent which eventually squeezes them out of the neighborhood. Owners benefit when they sell their houses or take out a home equity loan, but when they are living in them, they just see increased taxes.
It drives up property values, which usually means higher property taxes. And then the services and businesses that come in typically tend to be more expensive, as well, since they are catering to a different demographic than the average resident living there *before* gentrification happened, and because they have to pay higher leases to even be there. So it makes for a very unaffordable area for people who are already having trouble affording the basics. They can end up losing their house or apartment and having to move somewhere else, which is also expensive on its own and can put them in even harsher financial straits, like finding employment in the new area.
It drives up property values, which usually means higher property taxes. And then the services and businesses that come in typically tend to be more expensive, as well, since they are catering to a different demographic than the average resident living there *before* gentrification happened, and because they have to pay higher leases to even be there. So it makes for a very unaffordable area for people who are already having trouble affording the basics. They can end up losing their house or apartment and having to move somewhere else, which is also expensive on its own and can put them in even harsher financial straits, like finding employment in the new area.
Poor neighborhoods have a higher number of people that rent homes instead of owning them. Gentrification increases property values which harms renters since they do not benefit from increased property value, they only see it raise their rent which eventually squeezes them out of the neighborhood. Owners benefit when they sell their houses or take out a home equity loan, but when they are living in them, they just see increased taxes.
The basic thing is that if you go to a neighborhood where a lot of poor people are living, and “fix it up” in ways where now richer people like it, the poor people lose their homes because the rent goes up. In most poor neighborhoods, people don’t own homes, they are renting. And if the neighborhood is now fixed up, the landlords who own the houses and apartments can charge higher rent and make more money off of the new people who want to move in.
This may be nice for the neighborhood, but sucks for the people already living there that now have to move because their homes are now more expensive than they used to be. The poor people aren’t necessarily making more money now that the neighborhood is fancier, and landlords would rather earn more money than keep the rents at the low level they already were at.
It drives up property values, which usually means higher property taxes. And then the services and businesses that come in typically tend to be more expensive, as well, since they are catering to a different demographic than the average resident living there *before* gentrification happened, and because they have to pay higher leases to even be there. So it makes for a very unaffordable area for people who are already having trouble affording the basics. They can end up losing their house or apartment and having to move somewhere else, which is also expensive on its own and can put them in even harsher financial straits, like finding employment in the new area.
The basic thing is that if you go to a neighborhood where a lot of poor people are living, and “fix it up” in ways where now richer people like it, the poor people lose their homes because the rent goes up. In most poor neighborhoods, people don’t own homes, they are renting. And if the neighborhood is now fixed up, the landlords who own the houses and apartments can charge higher rent and make more money off of the new people who want to move in.
This may be nice for the neighborhood, but sucks for the people already living there that now have to move because their homes are now more expensive than they used to be. The poor people aren’t necessarily making more money now that the neighborhood is fancier, and landlords would rather earn more money than keep the rents at the low level they already were at.
It prices poorer residents out, essentially. It’s kinda unavoidable though, since part of the reason the current rents are so low is because the current housing is old and dilapidated. You can’t let housing degrade forever, and you can’t re-build it with old & cheap housing. Any improvement will cause the price to rise. It’s also essentially the result of supply & demand, which you can’t really stop.
It prices poorer residents out, essentially. It’s kinda unavoidable though, since part of the reason the current rents are so low is because the current housing is old and dilapidated. You can’t let housing degrade forever, and you can’t re-build it with old & cheap housing. Any improvement will cause the price to rise. It’s also essentially the result of supply & demand, which you can’t really stop.
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