With a provincial election under way, a newly released report, Income Inequality and the Housing Crisis in Windsor-Essex County, reveals alarming trends in income disparity and housing affordability in the region.
The report, a collaboration between five community organizations, underscores the urgent need for policy interventions to address rising economic inequality and its impact on housing accessibility.
Developed as a collaborative project between Assisted Living Southwestern Ontario (ALSO), Family Services Windsor-Essex (FSWE), Habitat for Humanity Windsor-Essex, South Essex Community Council (SECC), and the Welcome Centre Shelter for Women and Families, with research undertaken by Community Policy Solutions the report provides an in-depth analysis of income distribution and housing affordability challenges in Windsor-Essex.
Key Findings:
- Windsor-Essex Among Canada’s Most Unequal Regions: The region ranks fifth in Canada for income inequality, trailing only Toronto, Calgary, Vancouver, and Hamilton.
- Soaring Housing Costs: Since 2006, housing prices have surged by 150%, while median incomes have declined by 10% when adjusted for inflation.
- Disproportionate Impact on Vulnerable Groups: Persons with disabilities, single mothers, newcomers, and low-income households face significant barriers to securing stable housing.
- Investor-Owned Properties Increasing: 64% of condos and 12% of single-family homes in Windsor-Essex are owned by investors, driving up rental costs and exacerbating affordability and inequality issues.
- Housing Affordability in Decline: Between 2015 and 2020, 149 neighbourhoods (Census Dissemination Areas) in Windsor-Essex became unaffordable to middle-income earners to purchase a new home.
A Call for Action
The report emphasizes the need for a multi-faceted approach to address these challenges, including:
- Zoning and Planning Reforms to allow for more diverse and affordable housing options to be built at lower costs.
- Innovative housing solutions like Community Land Trusts to keep land and housing permanently affordable.
- Improved Social Assistance Rates to ensure the most vulnerable are able to afford housing in our community.
- Adopt broader community wealth building strategies across our region by buying local, ensuring fair wages are being paid, access to public transportation services in all municipalities, and considering tangible community benefits when municipal or regional projects are advance.
“The findings are clear: Windsor-Essex can no longer rely on historically low housing costs to balance out lower income of residents. Growing inequality is pointing to the fact that many people in Windsor-Essex are now being left behind. Without immediate action, the affordability crisis will continue to push more residents into precarious housing situations,” said Frazier Fathers, report author and Lead Consultant at Community Policy Solutions.
The full report is available for download as are over a dozen maps that map affordability and inequality at different income thresholds for the Windsor-Essex region.