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| Ozant Liuky/Pixabay |
This one needs a slight warm up.
You see, every city in the world has specific areas within it that are called 'posh areas'. Yes, you guessed right, these are the locales where one sees lavish homes, high end retailers and the occasional Mercedes-Benz 300 SL Gullwing.
Amid all this pretty opulence, there is no space for ordinary residents - common folk like cops, teachers, repairmen, factory supervisors, yoga instructors, startup founders or daily newsletter editors.
Reason? Housing prices in posh localities are beyond the reach of the ordinary.
Now, keep increasing the size of this imaginary posh area till it covers the entire city. A gigantic problem begins to emerge. What is a city without its common people?
The Great Divide
In a recent sobering piece by Alan Crawford, we found this profound quote - “We’re witnessing sections of society being shut out of parts of our city because they can no longer afford apartments,” Berlin Mayor Michael Mueller says. “That’s the case in London, in Paris, in Rome, and now unfortunately increasingly in Berlin.”
Soaring property prices are forcing people all over the world to abandon all hope of owning a home and the fallout is shaking up governments.
Silent Global Pandemic
In South Korea, President Moon Jae-in’s party took a drubbing in mayoral elections this year after failing to tackle a 90% rise in the average price of an apartment in Seoul since he took office in May 2017.
In July 2021, the cost of an apartment in Shenzhen, China was equal to 43.5 times a resident’s average salary.
In Canada, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has promised a two-year ban on foreign buyers if re-elected.
While those are distant examples, look around your own neighbourhood and you'll hear echoes of the same housing crisis. What we’re witnessing is a major event that should no longer be shrugged off or ignored.
Is There A Solution?
To be honest, there are many credible lines of thought out there which could solve the housing crisis but so far, they are just thoughts and can thus be shared for free.
Public Housing - Land parcels in cities must be owned and developed by governments, only to be handed over to the common folks at an affordable price.
Building Smaller Homes - Dwelling units could do with a size restriction, reducing space wastage and housing more people in the same amount of built up area.
Rent Control - The amount of rent chargeable by landlords could be capped, forcibly keeping housing affordable.
Limit Land Speculation - Vacant lands must be used to house people instead of being a money making tool for investors waiting to sell it for a profit in the future.
Now, keep increasing the size of this imaginary posh area till it covers the entire city. A gigantic problem begins to emerge. What is a city without its common people?
The Great Divide
In a recent sobering piece by Alan Crawford, we found this profound quote - “We’re witnessing sections of society being shut out of parts of our city because they can no longer afford apartments,” Berlin Mayor Michael Mueller says. “That’s the case in London, in Paris, in Rome, and now unfortunately increasingly in Berlin.”
Soaring property prices are forcing people all over the world to abandon all hope of owning a home and the fallout is shaking up governments.
Silent Global Pandemic
In South Korea, President Moon Jae-in’s party took a drubbing in mayoral elections this year after failing to tackle a 90% rise in the average price of an apartment in Seoul since he took office in May 2017.
In July 2021, the cost of an apartment in Shenzhen, China was equal to 43.5 times a resident’s average salary.
In Canada, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has promised a two-year ban on foreign buyers if re-elected.
While those are distant examples, look around your own neighbourhood and you'll hear echoes of the same housing crisis. What we’re witnessing is a major event that should no longer be shrugged off or ignored.
Is There A Solution?
To be honest, there are many credible lines of thought out there which could solve the housing crisis but so far, they are just thoughts and can thus be shared for free.
Public Housing - Land parcels in cities must be owned and developed by governments, only to be handed over to the common folks at an affordable price.
Building Smaller Homes - Dwelling units could do with a size restriction, reducing space wastage and housing more people in the same amount of built up area.
Rent Control - The amount of rent chargeable by landlords could be capped, forcibly keeping housing affordable.
Limit Land Speculation - Vacant lands must be used to house people instead of being a money making tool for investors waiting to sell it for a profit in the future.
Increase Taxes - To limit real estate speculation, governments could also introduce higher tax rates for returns from real estate investments, especially land and housing.
Make Rural Attractive - if we get more people to move to rural areas, the demand for housing in cities would decrease and rents/property prices would become more affordable.
Herein surfaces the problem. In reality, every proposed solution to the housing crisis resembles a bad joke. However, if we do decide to get serious as a race, the ensuing result would be nothing short of utopia.
Make Rural Attractive - if we get more people to move to rural areas, the demand for housing in cities would decrease and rents/property prices would become more affordable.
Herein surfaces the problem. In reality, every proposed solution to the housing crisis resembles a bad joke. However, if we do decide to get serious as a race, the ensuing result would be nothing short of utopia.