The Effect of Gentrification on Low-Income Families Research Paper

Introduction

• Hook: The effect of gentrification in the urban areas of Baltimore, Maryland, on low-income families.
• Thesis: Gentrification in the urban areas of Baltimore, Maryland, has a devastating effect on low-income families as it forces them to leave their house due to high rental costs and move to disadvantaged neighborhoods. In order to minimize this issue, the solution proposed is the establishment of a community land trust that will allow underprivileged citizens to own a local property. The main counter argument is the benefits of displacement as it reduces poverty and crime rates. However, the proposed solution may be regarded as more efficient as it contributes to the development of the area by preserving affordable housing, creating opportunities for businesses, and enhancing racial equity.
• Problem: Gentrification causes the displacement of low-income families.
• Main Cause: The rise of rental costs.
• Evidence: Source: National Low Income Housing Coalition. “An exclusionary effect of gentrification is the high cost of rents that force low-income households to move to lower-cost neighborhoods with fewer resources.”
• Annotation: This source clearly states the significance of the problem and describes its consequences.
• Effects of Problem: Gentrification and related displacement lead to population loss, a loss of workforce and affordable housing, unsustainable property prices, a lack of social diversity, social inequities, and conflicts. For people, displacement lead to the deterioration of their living conditions.
• Evidence: Source: National Low Income Housing Coalition. “Displaced low-income households most likely end up in new low-income neighborhoods. Many vulnerable households that do move are renters and are at greater risk of moving to neighborhoods that have lower home values, high unemployment rates, lower median incomes and poor public-school performance.”
• Annotation: This source clearly states the significance of the problem and describes its consequences.
• Solution: establish a community investment trust.
• How Solution Would Work: When a local community investment trust will be established, low-income families will receive an opportunity to have community ownership of residential or commercial property.
• Evidence: Source: Broad. “The East Portland Community Investment Trust (EPCIT) was developed to help low-income residents build equity and fight displacement by having community ownership of local property.”
• Annotation: This source provides an example of how community investment trusts successfully works to justify the proposed solution.
• Cost and Resources: A community investment trust will be financially supported by low-income local residents by highly affordable investments.
• Evidence: Source: Broad. “Through EPCIT, which now owns the property, individuals or families who live in the four nearby ZIP codes can invest between $10 and $100 (that’s the cap) per month to retain ownership shares in the property.”
• Annotation: This source provides an example of how community investment trusts successfully works and the amount of common investments to justify the proposed solution.

Risk

• Counter Argument: Gentrification and related displacement is beneficial and it is not necessary to propose any solution as it has multiple advantages for residents.
• Evidence: Source: National Low Income Housing Coalition. “Gentrification can also benefit neighborhood residents by lowering poverty rates and exposing residents to more opportunity. Recent studies found that public housing residents in gentrifying neighborhoods are exposed to less violent crime, are more often employed, and have higher incomes and greater educational attainment than their counterparts in low-income neighborhoods.”
• Annotation: This source provides clear counter arguments in support of the unnecessity of any solution.
• Your Response to Counter Argument: Gentrification lead to more severe problems connected with racial inequities as it contributes to discrimination that makes people of color poor.
• Evidence: Source: Abell Foundation. “While Baltimore is losing both white and Black families, it is gaining a young, high-earning white population, but not Black population, through in-migration of families and individuals from outside the city. As a result, the white population is becoming more affluent, and the Black population poorer.”
• Annotation: This source provides an insight into the problem of gentrification in Baltimore and justifies the necessity of its solution.

Benefits

• Supporting Point 1: A community investment trust will prevent displacement of both current and future generations.
• Evidence: Source: The Kresge Foundation: “The best neighborhood investment trust models also provide an opportunity for community members to shape the trajectory of their communities.”
• Annotation: This source provides the benefits of community investment trusts.
• Supporting Point 2: A community investment trust will contribute to racial equity.
• Evidence: Source: The Kresge Foundation: Of low-income families that participate in investing, “the majority are people of color.”
• Annotation: This source provides evidence that community investment trusts contribute to racial equity preventing displacement as racial minorities constitute the majority of the underprivileged population.
• Supporting Point 3: A community investment trust will promote the development of businesses.
• Evidence: Source: Theodos and Edmonds: The example of EPCIT demonstrates that when investors own a building, they prefer to support businesses that locate in it.
• Annotation: This source provides multiple successful examples of community investment trusts that should be considered to accept this solution.

Conclusion

• Restate Thesis: The establishment of a community land trust is an efficient solution for the minimization of the effect of gentrification in the urban areas of Baltimore, Maryland, on low-income families as by allowing them to own a local property, displacement and racial inequities will be reduced, while people will receive opportunities for business development contributing to the region’s welfare.
• Call for Action: a trust should be developed by a non-profit organization that will subsequently raise people’s awareness concerning the necessity of their investments.

References

Abell Foundation. (2020). Drilling down in Baltimore’s neighborhoods.

Broad, J. (2020). Fighting gentrification and displacement: Emerging best practices. The Next System Project.

National Low Income Housing Coalition. (2019).Gentrification and neighborhood revitalization: What’s the difference?

The Kresge Foundation. (2021). Neighborhood Investment Trusts are promising wealth-building models for residents in revitalizing communities.

Theodos, B. & Edmonds, L. (2020).New models for community shareholding. Urban Institute.