Gentrification has many potential benefits for both local and new residents. The article by Meltzer & Ghorbani (2017) focuses on defining the effects of gentrification on employment in low-income neighborhoods. The authors suggest that the main benefit of gentrification is the growth of employment opportunities and job gains for residents. With new businesses offering more accessible and transparent ways of hiring, local residents have an opportunity to significantly increase their earnings by switching to a higher-paying jobs. Furthermore, the gentrification process has a high potential for the economic upgrading of neighborhoods. However, there is a high chance for gentrification benefits to be unevenly distributed across new and local old residents.
Furthermore, in addition to new employment opportunities, gentrification can make positive changes to the local community. According to Meltzer & Ghorbani (2017), residents in low-income neighborhoods tend to have a low level of education. Therefore, integrating representatives of affluent households in the local community should promote the overall community development into a diverse and positive environment. However, it is unknown whether the local community’s positive transformation will occur if the local population is displaced during gentrification.
Next, considering the Democratic and Republican parties’ political views on affordable housing, both parties addressed the issue but chose different solutions and methods. Thus, the Democratic platform approached the theme of affordable housing intending to address society’s relevant needs, such as providing rental assistance, reducing systemic racism, and eliminating the negative consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic (National Low Income Housing Coalition, 2020). The Democratic Party’s platform statement specifies that “no one should have to spend more than 30 percent of their income on housing,” and therefore, housing should always be affordable and stable (Democratic Party, 2020, p. 21). On the other hand, the Republican platform focuses on promoting responsible homeownership and reducing the federal government’s role in housing policy. The Republic Party also acknowledged the growth of rental costs and stated that further growth in rental costs can affect the number of mortgages (Republican Party, 2016). Thus, both parties identified the changes entailed by increased rental property prices.
References
Democratic Party. 2020 Democratic Party platform. Web.
Meltzer, R., Ghorbani, P. (2017). Does gentrification increase employment opportunities in low-income neighborhoods? Regional Science and Urban Economics, 66, 52-73.
National Low Income Housing Coalition. (2020). Democratic Party and the Republican Party platforms address affordable housing. Web.
Republican Party. (2016). Republican platform 2016. Web.