Ask someone about gentrification and there’s a fifty-fifty chance they’ll tell you it’s a good thing, however, there’s also a fifty-fifty chance they could tell you it’s a bad thing. The word gentrification seems as though to have both positive and negative connotations, so why is that? It’s because gentrification brings along both good and bad things and depending on who you’re talking to will determine which outcome is more important.
Let’s talk about the main good effect gentrification brings about; an improvement in the local economy. Gentrification brings along a lot of jobs as more businesses move into the neighborhood. As a neighborhood gets gentrified some businesses see that as a sign that more middle to high-income households are moving into the area. This causes major corporations to look into investing in those areas. Gentrification also brings about more smaller businesses owned by the residents who plan to or already live there. They see the neighborhood changing and are more inclined to take the risk of starting and developing a business. Both these effects bring in more jobs to the area, they also improve the economy as more people have more money to spend on luxury items.
However, the biggest negative effect of gentrification is population displacement. As more middle to high-income households move into a neighborhood the rent for that neighborhood increases. This cause the existing residents to look to other areas for cheaper rent. Even with the creation of more jobs, of the pay stays the same but the rent increases it will force many to move out of the area. This indirectly adds to another problem, overcrowding. As rent increases in low-income neighborhoods, low-income residents are forced to find housing in other low-income neighborhoods. This causes an overcrowding problem in those areas as people are then forced to comprise for lesser conditions or pack more people into a residence then what can be provided.
The solution to eliminating the negative view of gentrification would be to put in place laws that prevent population displacement. One of the major ones would be outlawing the development of housing that would charge rent significantly out of the price range that the current residents pay. This would lessen the likelihood that rent would increase and decrease the rate at which rent would increase. Another would be to freeze the rate that the current property tax is for residents who have lived in a neighborhood for a while. This would eliminate the fear of property taxes increasing and allow those residents to remain in their homes.
Overall, the real problem is population displacement rather than gentrification. If laws were set in place that allowed the current residents to enjoy the benefits of gentrification just as the new residents do, then the willingness towards gentrification and the view of it would change for the better.
Sources:
https://shelterforce.org/2014/05/23/7_policies_that_could_prevent_gentrification/