The Missing Middle Podcast

Cara Stern, Mike Moffatt, and Meredith Martin
  • 3.7 (3)
  • NEWS COMMENTARY
  • UPDATED WEEKLY

Welcome to the Missing Middle, a podcast about why the middle class in Canada is disappearing. We hope to help you understand why life is becoming unaffordable for so many in this country, and what can be done to reverse course.

  1. How Birth Year Shapes Your Economic Future

    8H AGO

    How Birth Year Shapes Your Economic Future

    From avocado toast jokes to accusations of entitlement, every generation seems to get its turn in the stereotype spotlight. In this episode of The Missing Middle, economist Mike Moffatt and journalist Cara Stern dig into where these labels come from — and, more importantly, whether generations really do experience the economy differently. They explore how major historical shocks — from the Great Depression and World War II to 9/11, the Great Recession, and the pandemic — shape our values, anxieties, and opportunities. The conversation moves beyond clichés to examine how birth year, cohort size, housing markets, job markets, technology, and public policy combine to create very different economic realities for Boomers, Gen X, Millennials, and Gen Z. Chapters: 00:00 Introduction 00:37 Avocado toast & generational stereotypes 03:25 Horriscopes for statistical nerds? 04:46 The history of grouping people into generations 06:41 Mike’s genX and Cara’s millennial experiences  13:24 Understanding generational differences 15:55 Generation size, power & public Policy 19:40 Inherited wealth & pulling the ladder up 22:30 The ethos of DemograFix Research/links: https://marcuse.faculty.history.ucsb.edu/classes/201/articles/27MannheimGenerations.pdf Hosted by Mike Moffatt & Cara Stern & Sabrina Maddeaux Produced by Meredith Martin This podcast is funded by the Neptis Foundation and brought to you by the Smart Prosperity Institute.

    24 min
  2. Did the Greenbelt Break Ontario’s Housing System?

    2D AGO

    Did the Greenbelt Break Ontario’s Housing System?

    Ontario’s Greenbelt is often treated as untouchable — but is it actually making the housing crisis worse?In this episode of The Missing Middle, Mike Moffatt and Sabrina Maddeaux tackle the question viewers keep asking: can Ontario build enough family-friendly homes without touching the Greenbelt — and what happens if it doesn’t? They unpack how the Greenbelt was sold as a social contract, why governments never delivered the missing middle housing they promised, and how policies meant to stop sprawl may have actually pushed families farther away. The conversation breaks down four realistic paths forward: doing nothing, finally legalizing family-sized infill housing, cutting immigration to ease demand, or partially opening the Greenbelt — and why every option is politically fraught. Along the way, they explain leapfrog sprawl, why condos aren’t working for families, and how decades of policy avoidance have left young Canadians priced out and disillusioned. If you care about housing affordability, family-friendly neighborhoods, or the future of Ontario’s cities, this episode lays out the uncomfortable trade-offs politicians keep avoiding. Chapters: 00:00 – Introduction 00:47 – The Most Common Audience Question 01:50 – Is the Greenbelt Politically Untouchable Now? 05:23 – The Greenbelt’s Broken Social Contract 10:05 – What Families Actually Need in a Home 11:35 – How the Greenbelt Makes Sprawl Worse 14:00 – Has Anyone Studied Greenbelt Sprawl? 15:00 – Four Options for Housing vs the Greenbelt 15:53 - Option 1: Do Nothing 18:31 – Option 2: Fix Housing Without Expansion 23:48 – Option 3: Cutting Immigration 27:15 – Option 4: Opening the Greenbelt 29:55 – What’s Most Likely to Happen Next? Research/links: Mike’s tweet https://x.com/MikePMoffatt/status/1991593178085142851?s=20 London’s Garden Belt: https://x.com/JenMTreadwell/status/2001256081188905271?s=20 The Welfare Effects of Greenbelt Policy: Evidence from England https://academic.oup.com/ej/article/134/657/363/7276598 Green Belts: Past; present; future? https://www.routledge.com/Green-Belts-Past-present-future/Sturzaker-Mell/p/book/9781138339392 Hosted by Mike Moffatt & Cara Stern & Sabrina Maddeaux Produced by Meredith Martin This podcast is funded by the Neptis Foundation and brought to you by the Smart Prosperity Institute.

    33 min

  3. JAN 7

    Ask Me Anything: Housing, Transit, and Our Podcast’s Future

    In this special Ask Me Anything episode of The Missing Middle, the full team answers your biggest viewer questions on housing, transit, immigration, and affordability — and we share a major announcement about the future of the podcast. We also introduce our newest team member and talk candidly about why this work hits close to home for so many Canadians. The conversation dives into walkable neighbourhoods and small businesses, why governments struggle to act on housing affordability, the taboo around discussing immigration and housing together, transit as a pressure valve for urban sprawl, and why seniors are stuck in family-sized homes. Plus, we explain what’s changing on the show, including two new weekly episodes, DemograFix and Classonomics, and what it means for listeners going forward. Chapters 00:00 Ask Me Anything 2025 and look ahead 00:45 Meet our editor/technical producer Sean Foreman 03:01 Introducing the new podcast DemograFix 03:52 Introducing Classonomics 04:16 You don’t need to do anything, we promise 🙂 05:01 Meredith’s take on the future of Missing Middle podcasts 07:29 Question from Matthieu Gagnon about walkability 09:56 Rahim Ismail’s Question about the government being out of touch 12:34 Examining the intentionality of the government's lack of response 15:36 Chosing one stakeholder over another 16:46  Vanessa MacDonald’s question about talking about immigration policy 20:49 Daniel D'Angela’s question about good transit 22:57 Seniors downsizing and banning all foreign ownership Research/links: Can Tax Reform Help Young People Afford Homes? https://youtu.be/rW9QZ91lF9k?si=lep3WbEYfmZATaUQ 2025 Provincial HOMES Report Card https://www.missingmiddleinitiative.ca/p/2025-provincial-homes-report-card The Positive Utility of the Commute: Modeling Ideal Commute Time and Relative Desired Commute Amount https://www.researchgate.net/publication/263313349_The_Positive_Utility_of_the_Commute_Modeling_Ideal_Commute_Time_and_Relative_Desired_Commute_Amount Measuring the Local Economic Impacts of Replacing On-Street Parking With Bike Lanes https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/01944363.2019.1638816 Hosted by Mike Moffatt & Cara Stern & Sabrina Maddeaux Produced by Meredith Martin This podcast is funded by the Neptis Foundation and brought to you by the Smart Prosperity Institute.

    31 min

  4. 12/17/2025

    Fixing Canada’s Health Data Rules Without Killing Innovation

    Is Canada’s life sciences and health tech sector heading toward a code red? In this episode, Sabrina Maddeaux and Mike Moffatt unpack how outdated and fragmented privacy laws are slowing innovation, and why aligning too closely with European regulations could make things even worse. They explore the “Brussels effect,” where the EU’s regulatory power shapes rules far beyond Europe, and how Canada may already be feeling its impact. The conversation dives into why modern health innovation depends on large-scale data, how Canada’s patchwork of federal and provincial rules creates costly barriers, and what lessons we could learn from countries like Japan and Singapore instead. Chapters: 00:00 Introduction 00:44 The Brussels Effect explained 03:17 Outdated health-data and privacy rules 04:13 Accessing lifescience data 06:00 Safety vs innovation 07:40 Europe lacks tech innovation 08:55 We’re already adopting EU rules 09:28 Asia leads the way in healthtech data regulation Research: Health Innovation Doesn’t Have to Be This Hard https://www.missingmiddleinitiative.ca/p/health-innovation-doesnt-have-to?utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web The Draghi report on EU competitiveness https://commission.europa.eu/topics/competitiveness/draghi-report_en Hosted by Mike Moffatt & Cara Stern & Sabrina Maddeaux Produced by Meredith Martin This podcast is funded by the Neptis Foundation and brought to you by the Smart Prosperity Institute.

    12 min

  5. 12/12/2025

    Grading Provinces on Housing: Who Earned an A and Who Deserves Detention?

    In this episode of the Missing Middle, hosts Cara Stern and Mike Moffatt break down his latest “home score” report, grading every Canadian province on housing. Atlantic provinces like New Brunswick and P.E.I. lead the way, while Ontario struggles, with high costs forcing young people to stay home longer and many residents moving away. The grades are based on 36 indicators covering supply, affordability, suitability, and societal outcomes. Mike also explores housing policies that help, harm, or have little impact, from inclusionary zoning to development charges. The episode highlights how some reforms succeed, others fail, and why provinces can learn from each other. Tune in to see which policies actually work and what it will take to improve housing across Canada. Chapters: 00:00 Introduction to the Provincial HOMES Report Card 00:45 The best and worst provinces at housing performance 02:20 36 assessment points 03:39 The report methodology 05:17 Avoiding harmful and irrelevant policies 06:24 Provinces that have irrelevant policies perform worse 09:40 Inclusionary zoning 12:30 Examining the number of adult children living at home 13:56 Ways in which Ontario sucks at housing 15:20 Political will(not to build housing in Ontario) 17:58 The levels of government can learn from each other 19:03 We were hoping BC would have better results 19:28 Atlantic Canada doesn’t get in it’s own way 21:51 How can the provinces improve? Research/links: 2025 Provincial HOMES Report Card https://open.substack.com/pub/missingmiddleinitiative/p/2025-provincial-homes-report-card?utm_campaign=post-expanded-share&utm_medium=post%20viewer Modeling Inclusionary Zoning’s Impact on Housing Production in Los Angeles: Tradeoffs and Policy Implications Inclusionary-Zoning-Paper-April-2024-Final.pdf Hosted by Mike Moffatt & Cara Stern & Sabrina Maddeaux Produced by Meredith Martin This podcast is funded by the Neptis Foundation and brought to you by the Smart Prosperity Institute.

    23 min

  6. 12/10/2025

    Are We Ignoring a Generation of Struggling Young Men?

    In this episode of the Missing Middle Podcast, Sabrina Maddeaux and Mike Moffatt break down a major shift in Canada’s income trends: men over retirement age are now earning more than men aged 25–34. They explain how seniors’ incomes have increased through pensions, investments, and government supports, while younger workers face slow wage growth, higher living costs, and inflation. The discussion explores key issues affecting younger generations in Canada, including housing affordability, childcare costs, wage stagnation, and intergenerational inequality. Sabrina and Mike talk about why young men are struggling in today’s economy, what this means for Canada’s workforce, and how policy changes could help. Chapters: 00:00 Introduction 00:42 New report shows young men earn less than senior men 02:00 Senior men incomes have doubled since 1970s 02:24 Young men’s incomes are down since the 1970s 03:21 Where is the extra senior income coming from? 05:53 The role of government transfers and entitlements 07:30 Breaking down younger men’s incomes 09:44 Housing have increased far faster than inflation since 1977 11:11 Why have wages gone down for young men? 13:31 social taboos around talking about young men 17:09 Concluding thoughts Research Links: What Happened to the Young Middle-Class Man? https://substack.com/home/post/p-181132084?source=queue How Do Young Men See the World? We Asked Them. https://www.esquire.com/news-politics/a63613007/young-men-america-2025/ Hosted by Mike Moffatt & Cara Stern & Sabrina Maddeaux Produced by Meredith Martin This podcast is funded by the Neptis Foundation and brought to you by the Smart Prosperity Institute.

    18 min

  7. 12/03/2025

    How Housing Prices Shape Families

    This episode of the Missing Middle podcast explores a new University of Toronto study that highlights housing affordability as a key factor in declining fertility rates in the United States. Hosts Mike Moffatt and Cara Stern analyze the findings, including the study’s estimate that over half of the fertility decline since 1990 is linked to the shortage of affordable, family-sized homes—resulting in 13 million fewer births. They discuss how delayed household formation, smaller living spaces, and rising costs for family-appropriate housing all contribute, and why similar trends are probably occurring in Canada, especially in high-cost provinces like Ontario and B.C.  The conversation also addresses misconceptions about fertility, critiques the “all supply is good supply” argument, and examines the structural barriers preventing cities from building enough three- and four-bedroom homes. Mike and Cara explore how unsuitable housing impacts families, newcomers, and children, how municipal regulations add to the shortage, and why resolving this issue requires major zoning, planning, and building-code reforms—rather than simply telling young people to “lower their standards.” Chapters: 00:00 Introduction  00:40 Examining a U of T study on fertility and housing affordability 01:40 51% of the decline in fertility rate is attributed to lack of housing 03:52 Unpacking housing affordability and Canada’s fertility rate 05:02 Cara highlights a viewer comment about the cause of fertility decline 08:50 Society needs younger generations to grow not shrink 09:20 Mike outlines the human right to housing 12:45 Who is more likely to be living in unsuitable housing? 14:18 Children are more likely to be underhoused 16:12 All supply is good supply - but is it? 18:50 Consequences of not providing enough housing in cities 22:50 Or/and we could build our cities up Research Links: Build, Baby, Build: How Housing Shapes Fertility BKC_JMP.pdf She's (Not) Having a Baby | Cardus Families Are Outgrowing Our Cities, and the Law Says They Shouldn’t Have To National Occupancy Standard | CMHC Hosted by Mike Moffatt & Cara Stern & Sabrina Maddeaux Produced by Meredith Martin This podcast is funded by the Neptis Foundation and brought to you by the Smart Prosperity Institute.

    26 min

  8. 11/26/2025

    Are Boomers Bankrupting the Future?

    The conversation highlights the pressing issue of intergenerational tensions in Canada, particularly focusing on the financial burdens faced by younger Canadians. Sabrina discusses the potential consequences of failing to address these issues, including the risk to public healthcare and the erosion of political support for senior programs. The need for a modernized fiscal system that is equitable for all generations is emphasized as a critical solution to prevent further societal breakdown. Chapters 00:00 Introduction  01:07 Are seniors struggling economically? 02:34 Shout out to Generation Squeeze 02:52 Breaking down who benefits from government spending 04:00 How Gen z and Millennials are fairing 05:18 Intergenerational wealth transfer from old to young 06:00 Shout out to Boom, Bust and Echo 07:00 Senior citizen tax advantages 08:40 Redesigning our fiscal system for generational fairness 11:44 Good policy doesn’t always make good politics 13:00 What happens if we don’t fix this? 15:00 Less intergenerational fight club more intergenerational cooperation Research/links: After years of decline, child poverty in Canada is rising swiftly: report Generation Squeeze: https://www.gensqueeze.ca Paul Kershaw's "Hard Truths" podcast: https://www.gensqueeze.ca/video Who is being asked to sacrifice in Budget 2025? Recent health care deal is a win for retirees. The finances of younger Canadians are collateral damage How younger Canadians end up paying more for boomers' medical care Seniors and the generation spending gap A trillion-dollar tsunami: Canadians grapple with unprecedented wealth transfer Canadian Institute of Health Information - National Health Expenditure Trends: https://www.cihi.ca/en/national-health-expenditure-trends Hosted by Mike Moffatt & Cara Stern & Sabrina Maddeaux Produced by Meredith Martin This podcast is funded by the Neptis Foundation and brought to you by the Smart Prosperity Institute.

    16 min
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3.7
out of 5
3 Ratings

About

Welcome to the Missing Middle, a podcast about why the middle class in Canada is disappearing. We hope to help you understand why life is becoming unaffordable for so many in this country, and what can be done to reverse course.

Information

  • Creator
    Cara Stern, Mike Moffatt, and Meredith Martin
  • Years Active
    2023 - 2026
  • Episodes
    144
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © 2026 The Missing Middle Podcast
  • Show Website
    The Missing Middle Podcast

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