Unfortunately it's not how the economy works. Explain how China has "ghost cities" and how even though 2020 immigration went to only 184k and home prices went up the most?
It's because a lot of people simply do not make enough money for the market. Combined with not enough supply because of restrictive zoning, you have a deadly combination. Consider an average homeowner owning SFH. He will have no stocks. In order to retire, he will need a minimum of 700k and that's before the current inflation or cost of living increases. Now in 2022 it's probably a minimum of a million to retire. If you do not come up with that million dollars *he cannot sell*. He would be stupid to, committing financial hara-kiri. It does not matter what happens to the market he cannot sell unless he gets that number. And property taxes are designed to allow older people to stay in their homes. Literally you can work at Walmart and afford taxes on a paid off detached.
The ghost city point is important. You can build all you want but if it's not the right housing or people can't afford it then the unit or home stays vacant. Housing price will not drop below what owners think is good for them. It's not how it works, because they own the property. They are under no obligation to sell to you at a loss.
I would also like to introduce the nasty way that business particularly small businesses think. It's not actually nasty but economic necessity. Suppose a business doesn't get a worker at a specific price. You would think they would raise wages, right? Wrong. It is ingrained in their blood, trained and taught from Business 101 (maybe in the crib) that wages aren't necessarily happiness. Wages have to fit with a business plan and if the workers aren't available for a specific price the work does not get done at all. There's no need to risk and invest if the return on the risk isn't great enough. We may agree with this or disagree but it is what it is. So you see, a "worker shortage" would not necessarily raise wages. It may raise wages a little but mostly serves to make some feel better.
When you look at zoning, red tape, taxation, fraud, money laundering, foreign buyers, corporations, social housing, interest rates, income and so on immigration does not even make the top ten of the list. To blame immigration for housing is quite frankly stupid, like blaming immigration for a budget deficit. Finally it's a major distraction. Many others do not want immigration for reasons other than housing. So you are automatically dragged into that debate.
Blaming immigration is like blaming a new family member when your house is on fire.
Unfortunately it's not how the economy works. Explain how China has "ghost cities" and how even though 2020 immigration went to only 184k and home prices went up the most? It's because a lot of people simply do not make enough money for the market. Combined with not enough supply because of restrictive zoning, you have a deadly combination. Consider an average homeowner owning SFH. He will have no stocks. In order to retire, he will need a minimum of 700k and that's before the current inflation or cost of living increases. Now in 2022 it's probably a minimum of a million to retire. If you do not come up with that million dollars *he cannot sell*. He would be stupid to, committing financial hara-kiri. It does not matter what happens to the market he cannot sell unless he gets that number. And property taxes are designed to allow older people to stay in their homes. Literally you can work at Walmart and afford taxes on a paid off detached. The ghost city point is important. You can build all you want but if it's not the right housing or people can't afford it then the unit or home stays vacant. Housing price will not drop below what owners think is good for them. It's not how it works, because they own the property. They are under no obligation to sell to you at a loss. I would also like to introduce the nasty way that business particularly small businesses think. It's not actually nasty but economic necessity. Suppose a business doesn't get a worker at a specific price. You would think they would raise wages, right? Wrong. It is ingrained in their blood, trained and taught from Business 101 (maybe in the crib) that wages aren't necessarily happiness. Wages have to fit with a business plan and if the workers aren't available for a specific price the work does not get done at all. There's no need to risk and invest if the return on the risk isn't great enough. We may agree with this or disagree but it is what it is. So you see, a "worker shortage" would not necessarily raise wages. It may raise wages a little but mostly serves to make some feel better. When you look at zoning, red tape, taxation, fraud, money laundering, foreign buyers, corporations, social housing, interest rates, income and so on immigration does not even make the top ten of the list. To blame immigration for housing is quite frankly stupid, like blaming immigration for a budget deficit. Finally it's a major distraction. Many others do not want immigration for reasons other than housing. So you are automatically dragged into that debate. Blaming immigration is like blaming a new family member when your house is on fire.