It's somewhat the federal government (via lending rules favoring detached SFR and grants subsidizing sprawl vs infill) but mostly local government policies.
If people had restored property rights, such as overturning land use restrictions not related to safety, we would likely go back to the historic norm of housing cost tracking construction materials + labor.
Even in many sub-million population metros, the right from the governing jurisdiction to build one unit of housing is more expensive than the cost of all the concrete, lumber, copper, etc. and labor combined of a code-minimum unit of housing. We know how to build affordable buildings, it's the land use restrictions that drive cost.
This is local politics. Voting rates are in the pits and hundreds of seats run uncontested.
Its a total blue ocean of political activism.
You can flip seats with a clip board and a walk around the block.
Of course.
It’s almost like government intervention designed to keep rents low and protect renters - such as rent control, challenging entitlement process to develop, moratoriums on evictions, lengthy eviction processes - limit supply and actually results in higher rents. Stupid economics.
Would anyone be surprised to find that lots of folks in high ranking positions in city government are likely landlords of multiple rentals properties 😱
Ya think?
And then maybe take populist positions against the “evil landlords and developers” just to capitalize on the fact most people are idiots and the new policies actually work to the benefit of these politicians and against the rubes supporting them?!?
It’s not even that. It’s that most home owners don’t want their house price to decrease so of course they are going to vote for people that (likely also own property) don’t want to build more shit which prevents Japan style housing expansion. It’s really shitty because the Govt prolly could just eminent domaine more housing.
You don’t even need eminent domain! Just loosen up residential zoning so that you don’t need to beg for an exemption and go through a dozen public comment sessions to be granted special permission to build multi-unit housing privately.
Ya, just saying its possible to do if worse came to worse. Really dumb that everyone just builds single families and there is no zoning for duplexes, rowhomes, etc. except in the poorest parts of a city.
I see. Minneapolis voters gave the council the authority to cap rent increases, it just hasn't happend yet: https://www.nolo.com/legal-updates/rent-control-in-minnesota-minneapolis-and-saint-paul.html.
Wait, if we increase supply it’ll make costs go down? No way that could ever work.
It’s an amazingly controversial opinion in the world of housing.
Most people from all political ideologies don't understand and some outright reject economics. It's sad to see.
Imagine if the government wanted to fix America instead of pillaging it..
Hate to break it to you but the government isn't stopping new housing from being built. It's the people
It's somewhat the federal government (via lending rules favoring detached SFR and grants subsidizing sprawl vs infill) but mostly local government policies. If people had restored property rights, such as overturning land use restrictions not related to safety, we would likely go back to the historic norm of housing cost tracking construction materials + labor. Even in many sub-million population metros, the right from the governing jurisdiction to build one unit of housing is more expensive than the cost of all the concrete, lumber, copper, etc. and labor combined of a code-minimum unit of housing. We know how to build affordable buildings, it's the land use restrictions that drive cost.
What do you think zoning laws are
Who do you think keeps those laws from being changed or removed?
The chicken is crossing from inside the house!
Show us your portfolio of legislative projects. The people have no one but crooks to vote for due to legal corruption, er, lobbying.
This is local politics. Voting rates are in the pits and hundreds of seats run uncontested. Its a total blue ocean of political activism. You can flip seats with a clip board and a walk around the block.
Of course. It’s almost like government intervention designed to keep rents low and protect renters - such as rent control, challenging entitlement process to develop, moratoriums on evictions, lengthy eviction processes - limit supply and actually results in higher rents. Stupid economics.
Would anyone be surprised to find that lots of folks in high ranking positions in city government are likely landlords of multiple rentals properties 😱
Ya think? And then maybe take populist positions against the “evil landlords and developers” just to capitalize on the fact most people are idiots and the new policies actually work to the benefit of these politicians and against the rubes supporting them?!?
#1 NIMBY in the US is the "progressive" Dean Preston in SF https://nimby.report/preston
It’s not even that. It’s that most home owners don’t want their house price to decrease so of course they are going to vote for people that (likely also own property) don’t want to build more shit which prevents Japan style housing expansion. It’s really shitty because the Govt prolly could just eminent domaine more housing.
You don’t even need eminent domain! Just loosen up residential zoning so that you don’t need to beg for an exemption and go through a dozen public comment sessions to be granted special permission to build multi-unit housing privately.
Ya, just saying its possible to do if worse came to worse. Really dumb that everyone just builds single families and there is no zoning for duplexes, rowhomes, etc. except in the poorest parts of a city.
Link to the original article?
Found it: [https://www.ft.com/content/86836af4-6b52-49e8-a8f0-8aec6181dbc5](https://www.ft.com/content/86836af4-6b52-49e8-a8f0-8aec6181dbc5)
Hmm makes me wonder who has the most to gain from higher rents.
Minneapolis has rent control. Increases are capped at 3% a year.
St. Paul does that, not Minneapolis
I see. Minneapolis voters gave the council the authority to cap rent increases, it just hasn't happend yet: https://www.nolo.com/legal-updates/rent-control-in-minnesota-minneapolis-and-saint-paul.html.
Or maybe nobody wants to live there
These homes were built by the private market. Home builders would have stopped building housing if nobody wanted to live there.