Here’s a post for Canadians and others who don’t follow the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation’s (CBC) About That series. The story called Why are so many big-city condos sitting empty? might have useful insight about how cities worldwide are heading for hell in a hand-basket when it comes to affordable housing rental.
The story reports on shrinking rental housing sizes in new high rise construction. It also reports on the obscenely high rents charged for the new high rise units, which are financially beyond the reach of anyone with a modest income.
As well, there are the small scale landlords who have invested in these tiny expensive homes. These landlords are heading for a another hell in a different hand-basket.
Tiny expensive homes and small scale investors are threatening to create a perfect storm of urban poverty. Meanwhile an enormous chunk of new high rise housing stands empty and unaffordable for many of the people who need housing.
Th CBC story explains how rental housing in a world-class, expensive city can be a lose-lose proposition for everybody1.
Read more the crisis in Toronto’s housing at the CBC: Why are so many big-city condos sitting empty? | About That
Footnotes
- Toronto is perennially among the most expensive places to live worldwide. This year it is ranked tenth. Read more at CNN: These cities are now so expensive they’re considered ‘impossibly unaffordable’
