gentrification

consequences are perceived by varying stakeholders, often drawing examples from the casestudies.turn:The consequences of gentrification include the following, each of which we will discuss in• involuntary or voluntary displacement of renters, homeowners and local businesses;• increasing real estate values and equity for owners, and increasing rents for renters andbusiness owners;• increasing tax revenue;• greater income mix and deconcentration of poverty; 29• changing street flavor and new commercial activity;• changing community leadership, power structure and institutions;• conflicts between old and new residents; and• increased value placed on the neighborhood by outsiders.1. DisplacementDisplacement of low-income residents is one of the defining components of gentrification,and is also by far the most serious consequence of gentrification. As noted earlier, estimates ofdisplacement in the ‘70s and ‘80s vary widely, depending on whether the researcher takes a placebasedor people-based approach. There is little comparable research for gentrification in the 1990sand no serious examination of gentrification’s displacement of small businesses has beenundertaken. 30The amount of and nature of displacement seems directly tied to the tightness of localhousing markets. Where housing markets are extremely tight, such as in the San Francisco BayArea, the amount of displacement is likely to be greater and the impacts on those displaced arelikely to be more serious. A recent city-sponsored report concluded that 881 rental units wereconverted to other purposes in San Francisco between July, 1999 and June, 2000, compared to justunder 300 units during the previous year. 31Atlanta city officials recognize that escalating property taxes on homes in revitalizing areascan put pressure on elderly homeowners living on fixed incomes. The city offers a tax defermentprogram, under which a portion of taxes is deferred and due upon sale of the property, though29 The extent to which the low income people who leave a gentrifying neighborhood relocate in an area of lessconcentrated poverty than their original home is a function of many housing market and public policy factors.But almost by definition there is a relative “deconcentration of poverty” for those remaining due to the newincome mix.30 See Rowland Atkinson, “Measuring Gentrification and Displacement in Greater London,” Urban Studies, Vol.37, No. 1, pp. 149-165.31 Curiel, Jonathan, “S.F. Rise in Condo Conversion Evictions/Landlords cash in during hot market,” SanFrancisco Chronicle, August 26, 2000.15