Home Truths

Fixing Canada's Housing Crisis

By Carolyn Whitzman

UBC Press, On Point Press

Hundreds of thousands of Canadians exist on the edge. Renters fear eviction, homeowners feel trapped, and both are vulnerable to becoming homeless with a single stroke of misfortune.

Unaffordable housing in Canada is tearing communities apart as long-time residents seek affordable housing elsewhere and businesses shutter because they cannot find staff who can afford to live nearby. For two generations, Canadians have watched affordable housing vanish while other nations have been tackling the problem.

In Home Truths, housing expert Carolyn Whitzman reviews the decades of policy that have gotten us into this mess and shows how all levels of government can work together to provide affordable housing where it is needed. Her compelling arguments for policy solutions are backed by ideas from researchers, planners, politicians, developers, and housing advocates at home and abroad.

Home Truths addresses Canada’s crisis from all sides, including exploring what adequate housing looks like, providing ideas on how to resolve homelessness, explaining why non-market housing is crucial for Canada, and showing how and why to tackle ever-growing wealth disparities between renters and those who own. This is the book that Canadians need to understand, confront, and solve our housing crisis.

From policymakers, planners, developers, and observers needing to understand Canada’s housing struggles through to Canadians seeking ideas for a new way forward, Home Truths is a critical read for a nation on edge.

RELATED TOPICS: Political Science, Public Policy & Administration, Urban Studies & Planning

Carolyn Whitzman is one of Canada’s leading housing researchers – and it shows. She provides a wide suite of tools to address housing issues and covers issues from supply to zoning to speculation. This is a fantastic and impactful book! Brian Doucet, coauthor of Streetcars and the Shifting Geographies of Toronto: A Visual Analysis of Change

The recent debate over Canada’s housing crisis – and in particular, calls for more supply – has obscured the precise nature of the crisis, which is that we’ve failed to find ways to add truly affordable housing for those in greatest need. Carolyn Whitzman’s work pushes back against the dominant narrative with much needed data and analysis that should provide policy makers with an effective roadmap for reform. John Lorinc, senior editor at Spacing Magazine

Dr. Carolyn Whitzman is a leading housing and senior policy consultant. She is an expert advisor to the Housing Assessment Resource Tools (HART) Project, which is working to help redefine how housing needs are measured and addressed in Canada. She has authored, co-authored, or lead-edited six previous books, the most recent being Clara at the Door with a Revolver. Other works include over 100 book chapters, peer-reviewed articles, and major reports. Her expertise has been sought by UN Women, UN Habitat, governments at all levels, and not-for-profit and private organizations at home and abroad. She lives in Ottawa.

Introduction:

1. What Is a Home?

2. Why Is Housing So Expensive?

3. How Did We Get in this Mess?

4. Who Is in Charge?

5. Who Needs What Kinds of Homes Where at What Cost?

6. Can Canada End Homelessness?

7. Why Start with Non-Market Housing?

8. How Can Well-Located Housing Become Abundant Again?

9. How Can Renters Have the Same Rights As Owners?

10. Is There a Future for Affordable Homeownership?

11. Who Pays for What?