Researcher - Kate Choi
Ethno-racial and nativity differences in the likelihood of living in affordable housing in Canada
Canadians are experiencing a housing affordability crisis, but little attention has been paid to its ethno-racial and nativity disparities. The study shows that Middle Eastern and North Africans (MENAs) are most, and Whites are least, likely to live in unaffordable housing. Results from decomposition analyses suggest that MENA individuals’ high unaffordable housing rates are largely attributable to their high unemployment rates. The high unaffordable housing rates of East and South Asians are mainly associated with their higher propensity to live in urban areas with expensive housing. Immigrants are generally more likely than Canadian-born co-ethnics to live in unaffordable housing. Blacks and Southeast Asians are exceptions. As many governments take steps to address housing affordability crises, they should curtail the influence of structural barriers that preclude ethno-racial minorities from living in affordable housing.
This article is part of a broader project on racial/ethnic inequalities in housing attainment in Canada and its implications for the reproduction of racial/ethnic inequality within and across generations. This work received generous support from the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council (SSHRC). At the invitation of the Speaker of the House of Commons of Canada and the President of SSHRC, this project was presented in a research showcase in the House of Commons in Ottawa.
Ethno-racial and nativity differences in the likelihood of living in affordable housing in Canada. Forthcoming in Housing Studies.
Researcher
Kate H. Choi
Associate Professor, SociologyDirector, Centre for Research on Social Inequality
kate.choi@uwo.ca
