It is considered by some that housing is one of the most important necessities of human to live. Therefore, governments should provide houses for those who are unable to afford one. While I accept that this idea may suit many people, I believe that the governments should take other arising problems into consideration.
On the one hand, both the poor and society will benefit from this action. One benefit is that people will be less likely to be vulnerable to harsh weather conditions. If underprivileged people are provided with a house, they will no longer exposed to certain weather conditions like heavy rain and heatwaves. For example, extreme heat events such as heatwaves are increasing due to climate change, causing fatal death to hundreds of homeless people in Canada, where the deadliest case to this was recorded in 2019. Another benefit for the society is that the quality of living standards will increase. Providing free housing will help individuals relieve financial burdens, which allow them to afford other daily necessities.
On the other hand, there are other potential problems that the governments must consider before investing in free housing. First, spending on free housing will cost them a great deal. For instance, a financial burden on national budget is guaranteed to happen, resulting in the raise of taxes on people. As a consequence, there will be a public outcry against providing free accommodation for homeless people. Furthermore, this approach can also result in people become financially independent. For instance, if poor people are supported with a free accommodation, they may start to believe that they have the right to become over-reliant on government support. Hence, this dependency will result in a reduction in motivation to work and social contribution.
In conclusion, it is certainly true that housing is a basic need for the poor to improve their life quality, but this is by no means that the governments must allocate resources to provide everyone free accommodation.