Affordable Housing Crisis in Alberta!

I think that people become very desensitized on issue when they are not directly involved. Case in point is the the Affordable housing crisis that is being felt all over Alberta. Just recently I canvassed some apartment buildings in the Calgary-Elbow By-Election. I was amazed when one senior citizen told us that her rent was going to be raised by $500 dollars in a couple of months. This is absolutely absurd and these problems are only going to be getting worse over the coming months. She also told us that her 40 year old son had to start living with her in order to afford the rent.

I then went to an affordable housing town hall at the Stanley Miller Library in Edmonton where I heard countless other stories of the same grief. And what are the Conservatives and Liberals planning on doing about it?

Well rent controls are out of the question for both parties because they don't believe in getting involved in the Free-Market if there is really one.

Michael Farris at the meeting raised an interesting point about the free-market suggesting that there is no such thing because corporations are subsidized by governments.

But beyond that they argue that the free market will correct itself. Even though there has barely been any new apartment start ups and more and more apartments are being turned into condos. With the continued investment into the oil sands because of the failure of the United States to secure a reliable source of oil in Iraq, indicates that there is no end in site and there will continue to be a labor shortage no matter how you look at it.

The next point they like to argue is that rent controls will discourage new apartment buildings from being build when in fact rent controls don't apply to new apartment building and rent controls have proven to be successful in Ontario and BC off the top of my head.

They then go on to argue that there is value in the increases because people are seeing there apartments being renovated. So what should the senior expect for a $500 dollar increase. I know I was looking at the other apartments that reached her soon to be rent rate and they were no different from hers. The fact is that renovations to apartments went on long before the price gouging we are currently seeing and begs the question why would we be worrying about renovations with the labour shortage that we have.

So with that said I would like to hear your opinion on rent controls, and the whole affordable housing issue? Are you or somebody you know affected by this problem?