Friday 29 November 2013

Does government play a role?

The government plays a role in facilitating the vicious cycle of poverty-based-evictions of tenants and insatiable profit-making-pursuits of landlords. For instance, federally funded housing assistance programs systematically deny poor families' access to assistance through their policies. If an individual has an eviction record, it significantly reduces their chances of receiving government housing assistance. Based on the poverty statistics on the ground, this means that only a minority of those in need qualify for such assistance.


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The government plays a role in facilitating the vicious cycle of poverty-based-evictions of tenants and insatiable profit-making-pursuits of landlords. For instance, federally funded housing assistance programs systematically deny poor families' access to assistance through their policies. If an individual has an eviction record, it significantly reduces their chances of receiving government housing assistance. Based on the poverty statistics on the ground, this means that only a minority of those in need qualify for such assistance.


Also, the government’s rent regulations are wanting, leaving landlords an opportunity to exploit the poor. They charge as much rent as they please and yet the houses are in deplorable conditions. In addition, the government has done little in terms of policy to improve workers’ wages, further propagating the poverty-debt-profit cycle as workers end up spending almost all their income on rent.

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