There is a very big difference between a house and a home. A house is just a set of four walls and a roof. It is an empty and soulless place; there is no love and joy in a house. It is just a place to exist.
A home is a place where a person feels at ease. A home has memory and history. A home is an extension of those who live in it, and you can feel the essence of a person when you enter it. A home is something which is unique and special to everyone who has one.
There seems to be a rise in people who believe otherwise in Philadelphia. They see a person's home as a product they can make a profit off of. All the memory and sentiment means nothing to them. The families who live there are only road blocks in their way. They try to dress up and sugarcoat what they're doing, but there is only one word for it: gentrification.
Once there was just North Philadelphia, West Philadelphia, and South Philadelphia. Now there are all of these different neighborhoods, like Fishtown and University City. The rise of gentrification in Philadelphia is bigger than almost any other city in America. According to Philadelphia Magazine, the rate is now 18 times what is was back in 1990. Not only as the gentrification increased, but the poverty rate has gone up vastly as well. It has had a large effect on the residents of the city as well.
Gentrification has become a word which the poor and middle class see as the end of days and the upper class see as the genesis of a new day. The rich are the only ones who are afraid of using the word; it gives a label to their immoral actions. They can't see beyond dollar signs and see what these homes mean to the people who live in them. These homes are not toys to be bought. They do not belong to anyone with a large enough bank account.
