Why affordable housing is scarce in progressive cities
1–10 of 107 posts
Re: Why affordable housing is scarce in progressive cities
#2Progressives should explain why good neighborhoods and schools and high home values are more important than inclusive housing policies.
Re: Why affordable housing is scarce in progressive cities
#3> a shortage of new construction, a lack of tenant protection
"Tenant protection" -- especially rent control -- is a nontrivial cause of the shortage of new construction. High rents are a signal to developers that there is money to be made constructing new housing. If it's not possible to make the money, they won't do the construction, which is what rent control causes.
You get a population of existing residents with rent controlled apartments, who then have no incentive to fix the housing shortage or eliminate rent control, but insufficient construction going on and consequently even higher prices for people who didn't get a rent controlled apartment in 1975.
(Restrictive zoning is another, independent cause of the same problem, and the two compound each other.)
Re: Why affordable housing is scarce in progressive cities
#4Progressives should explain why good neighborhoods and schools and high home values are more important than inclusive housing policies.
“Progressives” largely believe those things aren’t mutually exclusive. So why should they explain your position?
Re: Why affordable housing is scarce in progressive cities
#5Cities are full. US population has doubled since 1960. If we get rid of zoning we will end up with overpopulated cities like Hong-Kong, Jakarta, Moscow, Tokyo.
Re: Why affordable housing is scarce in progressive cities
#6Cities are full. US population has doubled since 1960. If we get rid of zoning we will end up with overpopulated cities like Hong-Kong, Jakarta, Moscow, Tokyo.
Check out Houston.
Re: Why affordable housing is scarce in progressive cities
#7Progressives should explain why good neighborhoods and schools and high home values are more important than inclusive housing policies.
“Progressives” largely believe those things aren’t mutually exclusive. So why should they explain your position?
High home values and inclusive housing policies are directly opposed. They exclude anyone who can't afford high housing prices.
Re: Why affordable housing is scarce in progressive cities
#8> a shortage of new construction, a lack of tenant protection "Tenant protection" -- especially rent control -- is a nontrivial cause of the shortage of new construction. High rents are a signal to developers that there is money to be made constructing new housing. If it's not possible to make the money, they won't do the construction, which is what rent control causes. You get a population of existing residents with…
I’m not saying you’re wrong, but saying there’s no benefit to building new housing because there’s not a fortune to be made, well that just seems like capitalist-apologizing.
We’ve built a system where humans are expected to somehow accrue interest at the whim of the capitalist overlord. The soul of rent control is pretty important, so maybe rent control needs to evolve?
I’m hard pressed to defend it completely because it seems like dancing around the fundamental problem of capitalism not being in alignment with the best interests of society.
Re: Why affordable housing is scarce in progressive cities
#9A philosophical question: is it ever okay for someone to have to move away to find affordable housing? Or do we say that once someone becomes resident of a community, they should be able to live there forever?
(This isn't just renting; there are similar issues with home owners and property tax increases.)
Re: Why affordable housing is scarce in progressive cities
#10> a shortage of new construction, a lack of tenant protection "Tenant protection" -- especially rent control -- is a nontrivial cause of the shortage of new construction. High rents are a signal to developers that there is money to be made constructing new housing. If it's not possible to make the money, they won't do the construction, which is what rent control causes. You get a population of existing residents with…
"Rent control" is the idea that people already living in a city have more rights to live there than people who are not.
While it may sound socially just it is also one of most un-progressive (conservative) things you can imagine. It literally conserves the population of a given district.