(no subject)
Vancouver is now the most expensive city in North America, and we have a major homeless problem. It's no coincidence. And with the high cost of living, having the lowest minimum wage in the country until a year ago*, and low rental vacancies, even people with jobs are at the risk of being homeless. Get sick or lose your job, and you're fucked. And if you have a disability or a mental illness, you might as well pack your bags and get as far away as you can.
Because of the homeless crisis, the City of Vancouver had a brilliant idea: have a rent bank that will provide emergency loans for people who are struggling to pay their rent. It actually sounds like a great idea: loan money to help pay rent to people who will (most likely) be able to pay it back once they are back on their feet, but are having a financial crisis, and prevent them from being evicted. A preventative measure to one cause of homelessness! Great! Last year, when I couldn't pay my rent, something like this would have been perfect--I was the exact kind of person who this emergency loan was geared towards: I was perfectly capable of working and paying off the loan, once I got a job that did not pay minimum wage.
Today my friend and I were discussing the rent bank, and I said that while it's a fantastic idea, people who borrow money probably have to jump through a lot of hoops to qualify. I read the article linked above, the following pissed me off: "Recipients must participate in a financial literacy course to help them budget and prevent future need."
Not everyone who finds themselves in that situation (the very situation I was in), is in that situation because they don't know how to budget and handle their finances! The only reason why I did not lose my home (aside from my siblings lending me money for one month's rent) is because I do know how to budget and save! Sure, some people may be in that situation due to their own fault, but I bet that the vast majority of people struggling to pay the rent, who will be applying for emergency loans, are not in that situation because they can't manage their finances. I hazard a guess that the high cost of living, low minimum wage, and difficulty finding full-time, permanent employment are factors. But let's make everyone who dares to need a loan take a money managing course! (And for those people who work shitty minimum wage shift work jobs, or several jobs, to make ends meet, the last thing you want to do is take some stupid course on your precious free time, time that could be better spent looking for jobs, if you're actively job searching, something that takes a lot of time and energy). It's fine to have that course as an option--perhaps some people do need it, or would like to learn more. But to force everyone to do it is fucking insulting. And a waste of money, money that could be better spent in preventing homelessness or helping people out.
*For the past decade, BC's minimum wage was $8 an hour, the lowest in Canada (which nicely complements the highest housing prices), and over the past year, the new rate of $10.25 an hour has been phased in.
Because of the homeless crisis, the City of Vancouver had a brilliant idea: have a rent bank that will provide emergency loans for people who are struggling to pay their rent. It actually sounds like a great idea: loan money to help pay rent to people who will (most likely) be able to pay it back once they are back on their feet, but are having a financial crisis, and prevent them from being evicted. A preventative measure to one cause of homelessness! Great! Last year, when I couldn't pay my rent, something like this would have been perfect--I was the exact kind of person who this emergency loan was geared towards: I was perfectly capable of working and paying off the loan, once I got a job that did not pay minimum wage.
Today my friend and I were discussing the rent bank, and I said that while it's a fantastic idea, people who borrow money probably have to jump through a lot of hoops to qualify. I read the article linked above, the following pissed me off: "Recipients must participate in a financial literacy course to help them budget and prevent future need."
Not everyone who finds themselves in that situation (the very situation I was in), is in that situation because they don't know how to budget and handle their finances! The only reason why I did not lose my home (aside from my siblings lending me money for one month's rent) is because I do know how to budget and save! Sure, some people may be in that situation due to their own fault, but I bet that the vast majority of people struggling to pay the rent, who will be applying for emergency loans, are not in that situation because they can't manage their finances. I hazard a guess that the high cost of living, low minimum wage, and difficulty finding full-time, permanent employment are factors. But let's make everyone who dares to need a loan take a money managing course! (And for those people who work shitty minimum wage shift work jobs, or several jobs, to make ends meet, the last thing you want to do is take some stupid course on your precious free time, time that could be better spent looking for jobs, if you're actively job searching, something that takes a lot of time and energy). It's fine to have that course as an option--perhaps some people do need it, or would like to learn more. But to force everyone to do it is fucking insulting. And a waste of money, money that could be better spent in preventing homelessness or helping people out.
*For the past decade, BC's minimum wage was $8 an hour, the lowest in Canada (which nicely complements the highest housing prices), and over the past year, the new rate of $10.25 an hour has been phased in.