Housing Crisis Reveals How Financial Power Undermines Democracy

Former UN special rapporteur Leilani Farha argues that the global housing crisis reflects a broader democratic failure, stemming from excessive financial sector influence over housing policy and affordability. The piece connects inadequate housing access to the concentration of power in markets rather than democratic institutions.

Byte's take

When financiers decide who gets to live where, voters lose their say. Housing crises across Germany, Ireland, and Spain show how speculative capital dominates residential markets while the EU lacks binding affordability standards or supply mandates to counter them.