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Bills before the California Legislature would crack down on NIMBYs

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Re: Bills before the California Legislature would crack down on NIMBYs

#2
I'm making what I would think to be an upper middle class salary and I can't afford a home in a modestly decent neighborhood in L.A. It seems to me that there is definitely a problem and I support loosening development restrictions.

It's not only restrictions though. Of the people I know who own property, many, if not the majority, own more than one property, some of them empty. I also know many remote Chinese that own a property in L.A. It's super frustrating.

Re: Bills before the California Legislature would crack down on NIMBYs

#4
Currently trying to build a house in San Diego county. Red tape, permitting, and waiting on the county to review things has consumed no less than 18% of our total budget. I'm happy that California protects our environment from negative environmental impacts, but the way in which they do it makes new housing almost entirely uneconomical.

Re: Bills before the California Legislature would crack down on NIMBYs

#5
I think it's really hard to overstate how deep of a hole we're in up in the Bay Area. With the kind of growth numbers we're predicting, I believe nothing short of a radical shift in planning and housing policy is going to produce any relief for the beleaguered Bay Area.

The nine counties are currently permitting about 20,000 units of housing per year [1]. The Metropolitan Transportation Commission and Association of Bay Area Governments are expecting 27,000 new households (not people, households) and 43,000 new jobs per year in the thirty years to 2040 [2]. Thus, we're about 25% short of the units we need to preserve today's unaffordable status quo. To make any sort of dent in cost of living, the nine counties need to shoot far, far higher than what we're producing today.

[1] http://www.sfchronicle.com/business/networth/article/Bay-Are...

[2] http://2040.planbayarea.org/sites/default/files/2017-03/PBA_...

Re: Bills before the California Legislature would crack down on NIMBYs

#6

I'm making what I would think to be an upper middle class salary and I can't afford a home in a modestly decent neighborhood in L.A. It seems to me that there is definitely a problem and I support loosening development restrictions. It's not only restrictions though. Of the people I know who own property, many, if not the majority, own more than one property, some of them empty. I also know many remote Chinese that o…

> afford a home

Can you afford rent, though?

Isn't a bit extreme to expect to be able to own property -- like some sort of medieval lord -- in a major city?

Re: Bills before the California Legislature would crack down on NIMBYs

#8

I'm making what I would think to be an upper middle class salary and I can't afford a home in a modestly decent neighborhood in L.A. It seems to me that there is definitely a problem and I support loosening development restrictions. It's not only restrictions though. Of the people I know who own property, many, if not the majority, own more than one property, some of them empty. I also know many remote Chinese that o…

You have hit the nail on the head. Unfortunately, i fear that any sufficiently strong measures to restrict empty homes or foreign investment (see: empty home taxes in British Columbia) will be met with strong resistance from Democrats.

As a resident of the Pacific Northwest, the same property squeeze is happening here on a similarly massive scale, also driven by foreign "investment". In my experience, advocating for strong countermeasures is a great way to get one's self labeled as a Trump-er or anti-immigrant.

Re: Bills before the California Legislature would crack down on NIMBYs

#9
It's a very anti-democratic move by California. They are willing to destroy local control of people in their communities to foster growth that will lead to further deterioration of living standards.

Wouldn't it be better to try to grow tech outside of California in places like the Dakotas and Idaho where there is plenty of land and people in need of work?

The American heartland could be a place rich in opportunity if we invest there as a nation. Considering urban/rural income differentials it would ease inequality also.

Re: Bills before the California Legislature would crack down on NIMBYs

#10

I'm making what I would think to be an upper middle class salary and I can't afford a home in a modestly decent neighborhood in L.A. It seems to me that there is definitely a problem and I support loosening development restrictions. It's not only restrictions though. Of the people I know who own property, many, if not the majority, own more than one property, some of them empty. I also know many remote Chinese that o…

> afford a home Can you afford rent, though? Isn't a bit extreme to expect to be able to own property -- like some sort of medieval lord -- in a major city?

It didn't used to be. We should be asking why things seem to have regressed, shouldn't we?
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