SLU Urban Studies student Natalie Cassar explores social problems in New York City’s housing market

In SLU’s Urban Studies undergraduate program, students deepen and explore their interests in social, economic, and political issues affecting city residents.  Students in URB 340: Contemporary Urban Social Problems with Professor Sofya Aptekar helped select which social problems they would study together as a class, then chose one issue for a deep-dive final project.

Urban Studies undergraduate Natalie Cassar added to their digital portfolio with this investigation of New York’s housing market. Those of us who live in the area know too well about the steep costs of housing in NYC. Natalie’s project draws on multiple sources of data to underscore the point that the NYC housing crisis is not due to a housing shortage but the commodification and financialization of housing.