This talk, given by Peter Sabonis of Partners for Dignity and Rights, underscores the global nature of the housing crisis and its local impact. Given as part of our April webinar series on the housing crisis, Peter discusses three major causes for the “financialization” of the housing crisis:
- The growth in property values
- Speculative capital
- Retrenchment in Federal and State support for housing
He explains that the fixed securities market, which has exploded through the last decades, acts like a giant sponge for the capital circling the world.
In recounting the history of the housing industry since the 1980’s, Peter identifies the policies that explain how and why big corporations have taken advantage of the tremendous amounts of capital available for investment and put money into real estate – such as REITs, LLis, Mutual Funds and even college and pension funds. Real estate investments are attractive because they are considered safe and have has historically delivered high, steady dividend income and long-term financial growth.
Brought home to Chapel Hill, financialization of the housing industry is happening right here at home. With this background, we can better understand why property owners feel pressured to redevelop, why so many rezoning projects request rental apartments (high, steady dividend income and long-term financial growth), and why the political incentives to increase property values can impede municipalities and states in finding solutions.
Peter’s talk underscores the need to find local, community based solutions to our housing crisis. We hope to have him back in the fall to describe some of the successful efforts of communities. View this fascinating talk at the link below.
Find more information from the webinar series, including Peter’s slides and additional resources: www.chalt.org/origins-of-the-housing-crisis/
Peter Sabonis is the Director of Human Rights Development at Partners for Dignity & Rights. He received a B.S. in Economics from the University of Maryland, a J.D. from Northeastern University, and was a staff member at the Massachusetts Senate Ways and Means Committee.
Peter works with community groups to promote human rights based economic and community development. He brings together years of community organizing including skills related to law and public policy. Peter co-founded the Homeless Persons Representation Project, a legal aid program, and United Workers, a multi-racial community organizing human rights group. He is a member of a Baltimore community land trust (CLT), and part of the SHARE Baltimore CLT network.
He was the primary writer and editor of the Baltimore-based report, “Community + Land + Trust: Tools for Development Without Displacement.” Most recently, he co-authored “Developing Deeply Affordable Community Controlled Housing: A Toolkit for Community Activists and Allied Developers.” Digital copies of both publications are also included in our Session 1 Resources document.