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Priced out of home ownership

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Re: Priced out of home ownership

#111
post #77

Earlier quoted context omitted.

They will die though

1.8M/year (55+ cohort) is potentially not fast enough to bring about housing policy change in a timely manner from this alone. Non market housing is also a necessary component besides YIMBY. Housing locked up from market forces is housing that can remain affordable. Vienna is an example: https://hn.algolia.com/?dateRange=all&page=0&prefix=true&que...

Expansion of housing vouchers at the US federal level would significantly address the needs of those who can’t afford market rate housing. Vouchers are more flexible, time-limited, and face less political opposition than local subsidized housing options.

Re: Priced out of home ownership

#112
Given how abundant land is, does it imply that supply shortages are purely man-made? (e.g. policies not allowing large swaths of land to be built on).

Otherwise it doesn't make sense that prices are high for a good (housing) whose primary input (land) is in great supply.

Re: Priced out of home ownership

#113

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I recall a thread from someone from South America in the Slovenia subreddit, where they said they wanted to move to Europe because it's impossible to afford a home where they currently live. The response was basically "yeah, welcome to the club pal". It's definitely a global issue, rising population mixed with late stage capitalism.

Is this late stage capitalism in the room with us now?

It's always in the room with us. And outside the room as well.

Re: Priced out of home ownership

#114
In my mind I redefine the housing crisis in Canada as a business clustering problem. I think the percentage of attractive businesses that are concentrated in a few areas is too high. This comes in conflict with the human desire to not live in a sardine can. I would leave my city, but where would I work? My options to have a dignified life feel limited to me, especially in tech. Tech bros like me are pretty constrained to cities, which I really don't like.

Re: Priced out of home ownership

#115
post #59

None of the measures mentioned in the article — lower interest rates, lower transaction fees, down payment subsidies — will lower costs. Every one of them will raise prices. You can only fix this with supply: build homes.

They're building constantly here in Omaha, Nebraska. Affordable though? Apparently not. I mean if you have a lot for development are you going to build a $200K home or a $600K one on that lot?

Single family homes are profoundly inefficient in so many ways. They're pretty much doomed to be expensive housing.

Re: Priced out of home ownership

#116
post #59

None of the measures mentioned in the article — lower interest rates, lower transaction fees, down payment subsidies — will lower costs. Every one of them will raise prices. You can only fix this with supply: build homes.

There’s another way to fix it. You can regulate financial speculators. In the US 1/4 of all US homes are owned by financial institutions. I doubt it’s very different in Europe unless they are regulated. This situation ensures only the rich can own a home as buyers are competing against hedge funds.

Yep. Homes can either be for shelter or for investment, but not both. We are experiencing this as a global culture.

I dream of a 100% tax rate on second homes, foreign ownership, and corporations owning single family homes and condos. Or even better, make it illegal. But any politician who pushes such a bill would immediately get removed from office and the law repealed.

Re: Priced out of home ownership

#117
post #59

None of the measures mentioned in the article — lower interest rates, lower transaction fees, down payment subsidies — will lower costs. Every one of them will raise prices. You can only fix this with supply: build homes.

Make home ownership and renting them back to single families by corporations illegal. Seriously. It's the corporations doing ALL this. The people don't have the money.

> It's the corporations doing ALL this. The people don't have the money.

Maybe it's like that in America. In EU, where the investment 'culture' is different, there are hordes of people not knowing what to do with their money and buying homes only to sell them at a higher price (flippers). Case in point: Poland, where the housing market is quite bonkers - especially in big cities.

Re: Priced out of home ownership

#118

Society in UK, USA, AUS,Canada has been destroyed by housing as a financial instrument instead of……. housing. And politicians love every dollar of price increase. There’s the homeowners and the renters/serfs and nothing in between. Dead society, nothing to aim for or live for.

tbh I am so angry about this I dont even know with whom to be angry with in the first place. we just "got" here and everyone is just waving hands, especially politicians, that promise to fix housing crisis since 2000 and nothing happens, it just gets worse. I think some heads need to fly, french revolution style and that needs to be this violent in order for elites to be afraid again, idk what else can help.

Be angry at the currently retiring generation. This was consciously and deliberately engineered for their benefit. They even had the wisdom to carve out property tax exemptions for themselves. Perhaps they did not bother to consider what the long term consequences would be, but that is to be expected. The politicians merely did their bidding.

Re: Priced out of home ownership

#120

In my mind I redefine the housing crisis in Canada as a business clustering problem. I think the percentage of attractive businesses that are concentrated in a few areas is too high. This comes in conflict with the human desire to not live in a sardine can. I would leave my city, but where would I work? My options to have a dignified life feel limited to me, especially in tech. Tech bros like me are pretty constraine…

That doesn't make any sense to me. Tech bros don't make physical goods. You and I can do everything remotely. There's no reason to live in a big city other than you chose to.
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