Gentrification Pros And Cons

Politically, the process of gentrification is seen as a positive for urban development and The City of Toronto, through cleaning up urban decay and reintroducing spaces of consumption, luxury housing, and increased personal and taxable wealth (Lehrer et al, 2009). Toronto’s Official Plan (2002) lays out a coordinated approach to re-urbanization and intensification through the redevelopment and revitalization of land within the existing urban fabric (Lehrer et al, 2009). This plan identifies particular areas as key sites capable of accommodating urban growth and intensification by reducing the “red tape” of bureaucracy, now emphasizing entrepreneurialism and competitiveness in allowing private firms and investors to rehabilitate existing physical …show more content…
3). This process boasts many economic benefits that can be absorbed by both landlords and local government (Slater, 2004, p. 4). Once a building has been upgraded, the home value increases substantially, due to the physical upgrades and increased building amenities (Slater, 2004, p. 4). These upgrades elicit an increase in not only property value, but also rent value (Slater, 2004). The resulting increase in home value is beneficial for local government, when reassessing a home’s property value. Since home value has now increased through gentrification, the Municipal Property Assessment Corporation can reassess the property value, and effectively increase the property taxes that are levied (Mau, 2015). This increased property tax assessment is lucrative for the local government, as now the municipality is able to legally generate more tax revenue from property taxes, which then can be placed in various public coiffeurs (Mau, …show more content…
44). Acknowledging that the property can now capture a higher rent each month, landlords are less likely to negotiate if a low-income tenant falls into arrears of rent payments (Walks & Maaranen, 2008, p. 44). This trend is prominent in the City of Toronto, where the Residential Tenancies Act (2006) paves way for landlords to attract middle class tenants paying higher rent (Walks & Maaranen, 2008, p 54). In the past, individuals were able to negotiate rent with the landlord, but now the impetus of gentrification is to get rid of current low-income residents, since landlords can acquire an increased income, by tailoring their rents to incoming affluent populations (Walks & Maaranen, 2008). In 1961, all the areas in Toronto that would later gentrify were characterized by below-average rents, now the rent has grown by a third, with some having experienced a 50% increase (Walks & Maaranen, 2008, p. 43). This statistic exemplifies the fact that as the process of gentrification occurs, rents charged increase, adequately increasing a landlord’s individual and personal

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