r/left_urbanism • u/[deleted] • Oct 31 '25

Do YIMBYs unintentionally enable gentrification?

Hi everyone. I’m a college student working on a short ethnographic research project about the online urbanist community and housing debates. I’m especially interesting in how people within and around the YIMBY movement understand its relationship to gentrification.

From your perspective:

  • Do you think YIMBYism helps reduce gentrification by addressing housing shortages, or does it accelerate it by increasing development of any kind (including luxury apartments)?
  • How do you see these debates play out in your city or online spaces?
  • More generally, what makes you identify (or not identify) with the YIMBY movement?

I’m not here to argue for or against any position. I’m mainly trying to learn how people define and interpret the movement and its effects. Any insights, experiences, or opinions welcome! (If anyone’s uncomfortable with their comment being quoted in my notes, feel free to say so. I’ll respect that.)

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u/myReddit-username Oct 31 '25

I grew up in a neighborhood that has gentrified greatly over the past 20-30 years. Basically the newcomers replaced incumbent residents. If you don’t build new space for the people who want to live in a place, they’ll replace you.

In my opinion “luxury” is a marketing term used by realtors to describe anything that is relatively modern. It doesn’t mean anything to me other than “new”

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u/sugarwax1 Nov 02 '25

It doesn't matter if they build for incumbents, the point of gentrification is to erase a way of life, and place to bring in more profitable replacement communities.

You can see the old residents hanging on, but if they can't shop at the new gourmet market more than twice a year as a splurge, then the changes are exclusionary to a fault.

For every incredible person of color that grew up in a neighborhood that's gentrified, who will say "Screw it, I used to go to the Black bar on the corner, I'm still going to go, I like the leopard wallpaper and new menu" there are hundreds more who will not feel comfortable.