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Right, so if there is similarly an artificial shortage of housing as the comment I responded to suggests, what's the fundamental reason the problem couldn't be

by danhak 10y ago

Right, so if there is similarly an artificial shortage of housing as the comment I responded to suggests, what's the fundamental reason the problem couldn't be solved by technology (e.g AirBNB)

davidf18 10y ago
Actually, it was solved 100 years ago or so with technology. For example, steel framed buildings and Otis elevators made tall buildings possible and a more economical use of land (eg, less expensive apartments and offices than before these technologies existed). If you lived in NYC, you wouldn't see Airbnb as a solution but rather a problem created. It allows transients into buildings and we don't want that. We value our safety and pay for it financially. The real solution is to undo the laws that create the artificial "economic rents" that benefit landlords at the expense of renters. See Economist Glaeser's column I cited above.
- anchpop 10y ago
  Doesn't "transients" just mean homeless people? How many people are using AirBnB? Sorry if I'm misunderstanding
  - slededit 10y ago
    It means people with no ties to the property. Its a lot harder to get away with robbing a neighbor you see every day then it is to rob a stranger who won't be able to find you afterwards. Similarly someone who is tied to the property has a greater interest in ensuring its upkeep.
untog 10y ago
For one, because AirBnB isn't creating new housing. It's a tech tool that allows users to skirt existing regulation and rent out their property, and is likely to make housing shortages worse rather than better. You can't really skirt regulation in the same way when it comes to building housing. People are going to notice when you try to erect a 50 floor skyscraper in a historical district.
findjashua 10y ago
Airbnb isn't increasing the inventory, just enabling owners lease out existing inventory. Even there, it's focused on short-term rentals instead of long-term. If you want to increase the number of residences on a given piece of land, you have to replace single family homes with high-rises, no way around it.

by danhak 10y ago

Right, so if there is similarly an artificial shortage of housing as the comment I responded to suggests, what's the fundamental reason the problem couldn't be solved by technology (e.g AirBNB)

davidf18 10y ago

Actually, it was solved 100 years ago or so with technology. For example, steel framed buildings and Otis elevators made tall buildings possible and a more economical use of land (eg, less expensive apartments and offices than before these technologies existed). If you lived in NYC, you wouldn't see Airbnb as a solution but rather a problem created. It allows transients into buildings and we don't want that. We value our safety and pay for it financially. The real solution is to undo the laws that create the artificial "economic rents" that benefit landlords at the expense of renters. See Economist Glaeser's column I cited above.

anchpop 10y ago
Doesn't "transients" just mean homeless people? How many people are using AirBnB? Sorry if I'm misunderstanding
- slededit 10y ago
  It means people with no ties to the property. Its a lot harder to get away with robbing a neighbor you see every day then it is to rob a stranger who won't be able to find you afterwards. Similarly someone who is tied to the property has a greater interest in ensuring its upkeep.

untog 10y ago

For one, because AirBnB isn't creating new housing. It's a tech tool that allows users to skirt existing regulation and rent out their property, and is likely to make housing shortages worse rather than better. You can't really skirt regulation in the same way when it comes to building housing. People are going to notice when you try to erect a 50 floor skyscraper in a historical district.

findjashua 10y ago

Airbnb isn't increasing the inventory, just enabling owners lease out existing inventory. Even there, it's focused on short-term rentals instead of long-term. If you want to increase the number of residences on a given piece of land, you have to replace single family homes with high-rises, no way around it.