The Financialization of Housing: Housing and Homelessness Symposium

The first panel of the symposium on housing and homelessness addresses one of the overarching causes of housing scarcity: the financialization of housing. State-driven efforts to tackle the problem of homelessness rarely, if ever, work to address the structural causes of the problem and instead aim to implement market-based solutions. This panel, consisting of speakers Tammy Keuhne from One City Peterborough, Rebecca Morgan Quinn from the City of Peterborough and Annie Hedden from the Community Counselling and Resource Centre looks at alternatives to the for-profit housing market. The panel begins with a presentation from Annie Hedden on how the financialization of housing affects the private market, posing challenges for affordability, accessibility, and the adequacy of available housing. The next presentation, from Rebecca Morgan Quinn, looks at what affordable housing is, what it looks like and ways of sheltering housing units from being swept into the private market. The final presentation, from Tammy Keuhne, explores why, how, and what works regarding One City’s efforts to purchase congregant housing. Each presentation points to a hopeful alternative to the status quo of private housing and rental units, highlighting the power of community organizations to support those facing precarious living situations by bypassing the for-profit housing market.

Audio Production by Collin Chepeka

Music by William Ward

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