Housing (In)Stability

Principle Investigator: Laura Murphy, PhD Candidate
Duration: 2015 - Ongoing

We explore how low-income families were impacted by Alberta's (and Edmonton's) boom time, and what housing (in)stability looks like in a prosperous Canadian city and province.

This research is centered on understanding the housing careers and outcomes of low-income foreign-born, Métis, status First Nations, and non-Indigenous Canadian-born families in Edmonton, Alberta. Using the Families First Edmonton dataset, the researcher will examine housing similarities and differences within as well as between the aforementioned groups both quantitatively and qualitatively. Quantitatively, housing affordability will be used as a proxy for housing (in)stability and will be evaluated on how it may influence additional housing outcomes such as mobility, crowding, repair, rates of homeownership, neighborhood walk score, and neighborhood crime rate for each group over the 4 waves of the project. Qualitatively, case notes will be scanned for housing stories that may provide insight on the experiences of each group regarding housing stability- including barriers, coping strategies, and potential mechanisms of housing stability/instability. The findings from each inquiry will be situated within local, provincial, and federal housing policies in order to assess the impact of these policies on low-income families in Edmonton. This project is community-based and includes ongoing dialogue, consultation, and information dissemination between the researcher, members of Indigenous and newcomer communities, service providers and community partners. Read the article in CURB Magazine.