3 ms·

Why not try legalizing the construction of more housing?

jeffbax 9y ago
Fucking this https://www.seattletimes.com/business/real-estate/seattle-area-rents-drop-significantly-for-first-time-this-decade-as-new-apartments-sit-empty/ https://www.seattletimes.com/business/real-estate/seattle-ar... "Build baby build" / reforming zoning and the massive influence disparity of current homeowners is the only way to fix housing in major cities.
- Tiktaalik 9y ago
  Seattle and Vancouver aren't really comparable because even though they're both building dramatically more multi-unit buildings than in previous decades, what they're building isn't the same. For various reasons Seattle builds almost entirely purpose built rental apartments and nearly no condos. In Vancouver it's the reverse. Seattle now has a 5% vacancy rate whereas Vancouver has sub 1%, despite the fact that Vancouver has multi unit construction at all time highs (33k at the moment). It's a deeply complex problem and there's more to it than just building more. Clearly what Vancouver is building is not the right product to increase vacancy.
ttul 9y ago
IMHO it needs to be a very aggressive combination of both approaches. Single family homes should be converted to townhouses or apartment blocks in a grand manner and across basically the entire city, until the vacancy situation is brought under control. Ideally, politics would be cut out of the equation by implementing a rule on zoning that automatically adjusts density based on demand. Additionally, developers should be forced to provide rental units when building condos. An indication that something is wrong in Vancouver? The richest people in the city are developers, who have been reaping enormous profits by converting precious density into cash. The city needs to make that density far less precious by greatly increasing its supply - and quickly. Finally, speculation must be targeted provincially with a steep increase in property taxes across the board. Property owners who declare income and pay income tax in the province can have their property tax reduced dollar for dollar down to the original property tax rate. But investors - foreign and local - will have to pay more, making speculation far less profitable.

Fucking this https://www.seattletimes.com/business/real-estate/seattle-area-rents-drop-significantly-for-first-time-this-decade-as-new-apartments-sit-empty/ https://www.seattletimes.com/business/real-estate/seattle-ar... "Build baby build" / reforming zoning and the massive influence disparity of current homeowners is the only way to fix housing in major cities.

Tiktaalik 9y ago
Seattle and Vancouver aren't really comparable because even though they're both building dramatically more multi-unit buildings than in previous decades, what they're building isn't the same. For various reasons Seattle builds almost entirely purpose built rental apartments and nearly no condos. In Vancouver it's the reverse. Seattle now has a 5% vacancy rate whereas Vancouver has sub 1%, despite the fact that Vancouver has multi unit construction at all time highs (33k at the moment). It's a deeply complex problem and there's more to it than just building more. Clearly what Vancouver is building is not the right product to increase vacancy.

ttul 9y ago

IMHO it needs to be a very aggressive combination of both approaches. Single family homes should be converted to townhouses or apartment blocks in a grand manner and across basically the entire city, until the vacancy situation is brought under control. Ideally, politics would be cut out of the equation by implementing a rule on zoning that automatically adjusts density based on demand. Additionally, developers should be forced to provide rental units when building condos. An indication that something is wrong in Vancouver? The richest people in the city are developers, who have been reaping enormous profits by converting precious density into cash. The city needs to make that density far less precious by greatly increasing its supply - and quickly. Finally, speculation must be targeted provincially with a steep increase in property taxes across the board. Property owners who declare income and pay income tax in the province can have their property tax reduced dollar for dollar down to the original property tax rate. But investors - foreign and local - will have to pay more, making speculation far less profitable.