August 15th, 2021
Housing Market gets Heated:
A look into the KW home and rental markets , and protests surrounding them
The problem
At this point, it is a meme: The Canadian housing market is resilient(1). The meaning of the word
'resilient', in this case, means high prices, and a steadily increasing cost to buy a home, even in the
wake of an economic crisis. Resiliency, then, is very pleasant and rewarding for the homeowner, who
already has a place of residency, and only stands to gain from an increase in price(2). Though if
looked at from the perspective of the buyer, maybe a young person with little savings, or a newly
married couple who wish to support a child, resiliency, if it must be called that, can lead to a large
amount of grief. This causes tension in society, between older, established real estate wealth, and a
new, upcoming generation(3). In Canadian society, this tension runs rampant. The tension, which is
inherently economical, manifests in many ways - in a protest gathering hundreds of people to
advocate for affordable housing, or bank reports highlighting the large amount of mortgage
defaults. The dynamic, say many, needs changing.
Protests are a common expression of outrage, or a manifestation of sociological tension, when there
is a problem that has gone unfixed. The average price of a house in Canada as of June 2021 was
$679,051; this is up 26% from June 2020. A substantial percentage of the buyers in these cases are
not families, not individuals, but investors, money managers, and banks. With the housing market
this heated, this unobtainable for first time buyers, it is no wonder we see protests.
Affordable housing advocacy, alongside protests calling for action against homelessness, poverty,
as well as more radical demands for land and wealth redistribution(4), is alive and
evident in many Canadian cities across the country. Toronto at Trinity Bellwoods Park, Montreal and
struggles with tenant rights advocates, and BC, the province where home prices are currently highest, at ‘Billionaires row’(5), are all good examples. It is likely that these types of demonstrations
will continue unless underlying problems are solved, which is why what transpired yesterday
should come as no surprise.
The day of Saturday, August 14th, 2021, was chosen well in advance as an optimal date. Leading up
to the 14th, mass calls(6) from activists and concerned citizens were made advocating for
Canada-wide protests against the current state of the housing and rental markets across the country. One group
in particular, ‘Canadian housing crisis’, took the initiative in order to bring about this. Several cities
participated, including Toronto, Ottawa, and Vancouver. Another city, though not nearly as large as
the others, called on citizens to protest that day: Kitchener-Waterloo. KW is no stranger to
unaffordable housing and the consequences thereof. Regionally, the average price of a house in 2020
was approximately $630,000, up $100,000 from 2019, and this is expected to rise 7% this year. The
rental market is hardly better, as was highlighted in the Waterloo Record earlier this month. I
decided to investigate. When biking down by the University and King intersection last week near
Wilfred Laurier University, I noticed a poster. As I got closer to read it, I realized that it was not a
typical bubble tea or sandwich shop ad that is so common in the area. Instead, this is what it said:
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{Poster made by Canadian Housing Crisis calling for a protest on August 14th}
“It's time to fight for better housing in this country - in Kitchener-Waterloo and across Canada”
With such passion and determination in their words, I was naturally intrigued(7). The sign seen
above was posted in prominent areas all over town, and therefore, in all likelihood, it was either
glanced briefly at or caught the attention of several hundred or maybe even thousands of different
people in the area, a substantial part of them being students. The location for the protest was
chosen to be city hall. August 14th arrived quickly.
Day of protest
I had made plans for the weekend of the 14th, conflicting with the scheduled time, so begrudgingly, I
could not attend the event. However, being away from town did not mean I couldn't get boots on the
ground. My friend, roommate, and upcoming journalist Meghan Lawrie(8) showed interest in the
cause, and seemed excited about attending the event. Luckily, she was available that day, while
I wasn't. And so, it was a win-win: She would go to and document the protest, while I, in my
occasional laziness, would sit back and wait for the news. The rest of this section is paraphrased
from her work.
The protesting was to begin at 1pm. There were approximately a dozen people or so there at the
beginning, all in the front of the city hall building. Though a small crowd at first, they were by no
means weak, or without purpose. To give an idea of the sentiment during the day, here is what two
signs showed:
“Houses for people not investors”
“I thought being Canadian meant housing was a basic human right - Apparently
our politicians disagree”.
{Photo of the sign
and presumably sign maker}
On the topic, there were no politicians in attendance. Most people who protested in solidarity came
as individuals or in small groups, though there were a few organizations advocating directly or
indirectly for affordable housing. The organizers of the day, ‘The Canadian housing crisis’, as is
communicated through their name, believe strongly that there is a problem and that this crisis
needs fixing. Their protests are all over the nation - this is the same group that organized similar
protests in several other Canadian cities on the 14th. Specifically in Waterloo, the two main
organizers of the event were named Brandon Horn and Layla Morrison(10), who distributed the
flyers and advertised the event, in response to the unaffordability they had experienced in their own
life. They were interviewed by the Toronto Star prior to the event. Back at city hall, by 1:10pm, those
at the front of the building were directed to the back of the building.
By 1:15pm there were around 60 people at the back of Waterloo city hall, with signs, microphones,
and other protest memorabilia. As time passed the total increased, reaching a peak of 75-100
individuals. This is when the speaking began. There was a DJ in attendance; they played music for
the first part of the protest, and afterwards their sound booth was used by those speaking. The
comments and rhetoric coming from the microphone was serious in tone, reflecting the serious
nature of the issue. One person spoke of a couple of the potential consequences of expensive
housing:
“I’m tired of my friends dying from homelessness and addiction. I’m tired of it. People are being priced
out of places to live”.
An organizer of the event briefly mentioned they were disappointed in the size of the turnout. In
such an economic and social predicament as this, one would think, more people would come out insupport. Regardless, there were enough people who proudly stood for the cause to make it a well
functioning protest. Prevalent among the people was a Marxist group called: ‘Fightback - The
Marxist Voice For Labour and Youth’. Throughout the afternoon they distributed magazines and
pamphlets to any interested reader. Two of their signs read:
“Expropriate the Landlords”
“End Homelessness. End Capitalism”
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{Protester from the Marxist organizing attending the rally on August 14th}
“Housing is for people not profit!” the sign reads. This belief was a core value
of the protest and of the general sentiment throughout the day. Not everyone there was a Marxist, Socialist, or land-tax Georgist, but all believed in affordable housing, decommodification of certain housing projects, and the
breaking up of big companies and investors who wish to buy large swathes of homes in the region.
The organization ‘Waterloo Region Yes In My Back Yard’, also known as WRYIMBY(9) because of the
long length of the full version, also had members in attendance. In the pamphlet they widely
distributed, the group advocates for what they call, ‘the three S’s’: Housing supply, housing stability,
and housing subsidies.
What was made clear and visible to everyone at city hall on the 14th was the open anger and
frustration towards the current housing market and system. Negative comments about landlords
were commonplace, especially when that landlord was a company, as opposed to an individual
homeowner. A particular circumstance that was expressed on a sign and in words by one woman
was this: the inability to pay rent while working a full time job. The existence of this twisted fate for
the renter is, like many other things, because of wage stagnation and inflation existing
simultaneously. As the housing market remains ‘resilient’, increasing in value for sellers, those working full time for a wage earn the same amount. If wages don't keep up with rent or home prices,
then neither will have a chance of being paid.
Conclusion
By 4pm the passionate festivities had concluded; the protest, after all were done speaking,
expressing and persuading, was done. Layla Marrison, who was there in attendance as an organizer
of the day, told us that this was not going to be a one-off event . The ‘Canadian housing crisis’ protest
against unaffordability in the housing market will return at some point in the near future, she said.
This is until something changes. If nothing does, then demonstrations like these may become more
routine, and posters like the one shown above could be a permanent fixture on the streets
of Waterloo, Ontario.
{Aerial shot of the Kitchener-Waterloo area}
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Notes
1. This is the adjective that the financial times chose to describe Canada’s housing market in
this article, as well as other similar media outlets
2. Unless, of course, the homeowner has other loved ones or people they care about that
cannot afford to buy a home in the current state of the market, in which case they may be
conflicted
3. Though these are not the only groups on either side of the buyer-seller divide. Older people
who do not have a lot of money, who are hoping to retire, also find it difficult to buy homes,
while real estate agents and others, who may benefit from higher prices, do not necessarily
have established real estate wealth themselves. These were only examples I gave to
illustrate the dynamic.
4. I direct my readers to a previous article of mine: “LAND BACK: Canada and the ongoing
struggle with indigenous relations”.
5. This was a fascinating protest back in 2019. Hundreds of protesters marched down what
they called ‘Billionaires row’ to fight against wealth inequality and the housing crisis,
shouting phrases like “Class war”.
6. Weeks prior to the 14th, people started organizing online by posting about the upcoming
protests, for example, this event posting on eventbrite. In addition, posters and flyers were
distributed locally, as seen in Waterloo in the picture below.
7. When someone is passionate about something, regardless of cause, I find it irresistible to
listen, just simply based on the principle of - “If they care about it so much, why don't I?”
8. See 'On the credit I owe'
9. The name is a response to the ‘Not In My Back Yard’ movement, known as NIMBY, who
advocate against low income housing projects near their area. Here is their twitter account.
10. Layla’s Facebook, if interested
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On the credit I owe
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I owe great credit to Meghan Lawrie, a 19 year old born and raised in the KW area. She kindly
agreed to help me report on this story, both because she is very
passionate and caring about this issue, and because (I think) she wanted to help me. All information
about what happened at city hall is thanks to her journalism. If you wish to contact Meghan, email
her at:
m.syrah.is@gmail.com
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