The Canadian Home: The Fate of Owners and Investors in the Great Depression

Abstract

Although Canada’s is a liberal, settler-colonial society that has long valued the right to property, we know remarkably little about the experience of owners of, and investors in, residential real estate during the Great Depression. This was a period of great suffering for both. Scattered and neglected sources, coupled with cautious comparisons with the better-documented us experience, makes it possible to provide a plausible sketch. Many mortgaged homeowners, and a higher proportion of the stigmatized landlords, lost their properties through default or tax sales. Unlike the situation in the United States, lending institutions did not go under, but most residential mortgages were provided by private individuals, many of whom suffered. Because numerous owners fell into tax arrears, while an increasing number of families demanded relief, municipalities were squeezed. Out of necessity, landlords, lenders, and municipalities offered concessions to tenants and property owners, respectively. Although the Depression was a decade of occasional conflict, it was also defined by everyday compromise and cooperation.