Aiden Fung Photography Editor

The Housing affordability crisis seems more serious than ever. If you’re a University of Toronto student looking for a studio within proximity of the St. George campus, rent averages out to $1,574 — roughly a $300 increase from seven years prior. These increased costs in rental rates are often attributed to an increase in demand by international student populations, or even immigrants entering the country. With rising rental rates, how are we supposed to be able to afford housing, let alone tuition and other daily necessities?

In reality, the concept of affordable housing was never out of reach. There once was a time when the Canadian government viewed basic housing as necessary public infrastructure.

Throughout the mid 60s until the 80s, the federal government had invested in many programs to “fund non-profit and co-operative” housing, which ensured long-term affordable rates. This period was characterized by the government’s attempts to create successful community and social housing for the lower and middle classes.

In 1993, the federal government froze funding for social housing to cut costs and save on the federal budget. Before the 1993 funding freeze, Toronto’s social housing supply had an annual average of 3,900 units, and consisted of 12% of Toronto’s total housing supply. If this program had continued since 1993, we would currently see 129,000 social housing units available, which would successfully supply the current waitlist of 105,000 households, with over 20,000 units to spare.

While it is easy to point the blame at immigration levels, this ignores the increasing financialization of our city. Toronto’s housing is no longer being built to house people; it is being built as a speculative financial asset for investors. One of the clearest examples of this is the popularity of Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs), which allow investors to pool capital to purchase rental apartment complexes as a means of income-producing assets. In 1993, total assets in Canadian REITs were valued at $80 million, which had grown to over $75 billion in 2017. The growth in REITs has contributed to the commodification of housing by turning an individual’s right to shelter into a form of profit generation. The focus on maximizing shareholder value can often influence rising rental rates and reduce affordability in housing markets. When housing becomes a tool for wealth generation, rather than a social right, the gap between what a student earns and what a landlord demands will only continue to widen.

Insecurity, Not Affordability

Within the housing crisis, we need to stop talking about affordability, a term that frames an innate human right to economic concerns, and instead talk about housing insecurity. Insecurity leaves over 105,000 households on a waitlist for shelter and security. Insecurity demolishes over 1,229 rental units to modernize and financialize newer luxury condos.

A mindset of change towards housing must happen: housing is a basic human need, not a luxury. Treating housing as vital infrastructures, a concept unknown to a contemporary capitalist-driven city that has commodified into profit, results in a thriving, stable city where people of all incomes can afford to live, not just a select few.