5 ms·

39% of the US population lives in a coastal state, that's not insignificant either. Most of those people have a problem with affordability, you can't just shrug

39% of the US population lives in a coastal state, that's not insignificant either. Most of those people have a problem with affordability, you can't just shrug the problem away.

dionidium 10y ago
There is more demand for housing in the coastal states. So the prices are higher. People should react to expensive, high-demand housing in the same way that they react to every other type of high-demand, expensive luxury good. Which is to say: If you can't afford to live in a coastal state, then what you need more than anything else is a U-Haul.
- tomc1985 10y ago
  Those of us born in coastal states might have an issue with that. Affluence and gentrification destroy the character of interesting communities. Careless indifference deserves no place here.
  - dionidium 10y ago
    It's not careless or indifferent to acknowledge that the demand exists. It is a fact of the world. A fact that, yes, I understand, you do not like. But I haven't seen a single proposal that does anything to realistically address it. The demand is there and it's not going away. Whatever you're hoping for, it's too late.
    - mistermann 10y ago
      Bringing a massive amount of supply to market would solve it, but because of nimby and other reasons it will never happen.
      - dionidium 10y ago
        Right. High prices or lots of new housing. Pick one.
      - jxramos 10y ago
        absolutely, just commented on something along these lines a few comments up. https://youtu.be/5GoAGuTIbVY?t=146 https://youtu.be/5GoAGuTIbVY?t=146 and another good commentary on a comparison of what percentage of income was spent on housing early in the 20th century vs later https://youtu.be/bbPYedkDU8Y?t=152 https://youtu.be/bbPYedkDU8Y?t=152
      - Grishnakh 10y ago
        Never say never. They just passed a law in California which makes it much harder for NIMBYs to prevent development. State-level laws can do a lot to curb NIMBYism, as the state government is concerned with having a healthy economy and doesn't care much about local efforts to fight change and development.
    - crdoconnor 10y ago
      >I haven't seen a single proposal that does anything to realistically address it. The solution is trivially simple: build a lot of public housing. If you have a hard time imagining what any part of that plan might look like, take a look at Singapore: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Public_housing_in_Singapore https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Public_housing_in_Singapore
      - ghaff 10y ago
        Or the South Bronx. [1] But, sure, build a bunch of concrete high rises for tech workers on Treasure Island. [1] https://www.guernicamag.com/features/the-rise-and-fall-of-public-housing-in-nyc/ https://www.guernicamag.com/features/the-rise-and-fall-of-pu...
        crdoconnor 10y ago
        They implemented racial quotas to prevent ghettoization. >Sure, build a bunch of concrete high rises for tech worker I guess SF's bus drivers, restaurant servers, etc. don't deserve somewhere affordable to live because it might spoil the "aesthetic"?
- jxramos 10y ago
  I was just listening to some Thomas Sowell on Uncommon Knowledge earlier who commented on the artificially inflated prices for these select areas: https://youtu.be/5GoAGuTIbVY?t=146 https://youtu.be/5GoAGuTIbVY?t=146

39% of the US population lives in a coastal state, that's not insignificant either. Most of those people have a problem with affordability, you can't just shrug the problem away.

dionidium 10y ago

There is more demand for housing in the coastal states. So the prices are higher. People should react to expensive, high-demand housing in the same way that they react to every other type of high-demand, expensive luxury good. Which is to say: If you can't afford to live in a coastal state, then what you need more than anything else is a U-Haul.

tomc1985 10y ago
Those of us born in coastal states might have an issue with that. Affluence and gentrification destroy the character of interesting communities. Careless indifference deserves no place here.
- dionidium 10y ago
  It's not careless or indifferent to acknowledge that the demand exists. It is a fact of the world. A fact that, yes, I understand, you do not like. But I haven't seen a single proposal that does anything to realistically address it. The demand is there and it's not going away. Whatever you're hoping for, it's too late.
  - mistermann 10y ago
    Bringing a massive amount of supply to market would solve it, but because of nimby and other reasons it will never happen.
    - dionidium 10y ago
      Right. High prices or lots of new housing. Pick one.
    - jxramos 10y ago
      absolutely, just commented on something along these lines a few comments up. https://youtu.be/5GoAGuTIbVY?t=146 https://youtu.be/5GoAGuTIbVY?t=146 and another good commentary on a comparison of what percentage of income was spent on housing early in the 20th century vs later https://youtu.be/bbPYedkDU8Y?t=152 https://youtu.be/bbPYedkDU8Y?t=152
    - Grishnakh 10y ago
      Never say never. They just passed a law in California which makes it much harder for NIMBYs to prevent development. State-level laws can do a lot to curb NIMBYism, as the state government is concerned with having a healthy economy and doesn't care much about local efforts to fight change and development.
  - crdoconnor 10y ago
    >I haven't seen a single proposal that does anything to realistically address it. The solution is trivially simple: build a lot of public housing. If you have a hard time imagining what any part of that plan might look like, take a look at Singapore: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Public_housing_in_Singapore https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Public_housing_in_Singapore
    - ghaff 10y ago
      Or the South Bronx. [1] But, sure, build a bunch of concrete high rises for tech workers on Treasure Island. [1] https://www.guernicamag.com/features/the-rise-and-fall-of-public-housing-in-nyc/ https://www.guernicamag.com/features/the-rise-and-fall-of-pu...
      - crdoconnor 10y ago
        They implemented racial quotas to prevent ghettoization. >Sure, build a bunch of concrete high rises for tech worker I guess SF's bus drivers, restaurant servers, etc. don't deserve somewhere affordable to live because it might spoil the "aesthetic"?
jxramos 10y ago
I was just listening to some Thomas Sowell on Uncommon Knowledge earlier who commented on the artificially inflated prices for these select areas: https://youtu.be/5GoAGuTIbVY?t=146 https://youtu.be/5GoAGuTIbVY?t=146