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Or conversely, look at Portland for an example a place where keeping up with housing demand has not translated into preserving a quantity of affordable housing.

Or conversely, look at Portland for an example a place where keeping up with housing demand has not translated into preserving a quantity of affordable housing. Abstracted supply and demand alone does not result in ensuring housing at various price points

TulliusCicero 8y ago
Portland still greatly restricts where denser housing may be built. When you concentrate most of the new stock in huge towers, it's harder to get anything affordable since huge towers are inherently expensive to build. The point isn't that fewer restricts means housing prices won't climb at all, but that they won't climb as quickly. For the truly affordable segment, they're either served with old housing (like with cars), or with public housing.
seucs 8y ago
Or Vancouver. Singapore and Vienna is really a counter argument more than anything else. These are places were the government have significant control over, and are essentially undermining, the housing market. This isn't changing zoning a little bit. In Singapore the government acquired most of the land. And Austria is spending the equivalent of a defense budget each year on housing subsidies alone.
- TulliusCicero 8y ago
  Personally I'm fine with either the market or the government providing new housing, and ideally I think we'd have a lot of both. > This isn't changing zoning a little bit. It's true, fairly radical zoning changes are warranted. Or at least, radical by US standards. Although you probably wouldn't have to go quite as far as Singapore, since obviously US cities aren't as land restricted.
- mosdl 8y ago
  Except Vienna housing keeps getting more expensive as there isn't much stock available.
sizzle 8y ago
Conversely? Did I misinterpret your comment? Rent has significantly increased in the Portland metro area and gentrification is in full effect. There are vacant luxury multi-tenant properties littering the city and many more in the planning stages. As more tech companies enter the Portland market, expect this trend to accelerate.
- evanlivingston 8y ago
  Right, I'm agreeing with you. Portland has increased housing substantially without preserving affordability.
true_tuna 8y ago
Portland in no way kept up with adding new housing at the same rate it added jobs.

TulliusCicero 8y ago

Portland still greatly restricts where denser housing may be built. When you concentrate most of the new stock in huge towers, it's harder to get anything affordable since huge towers are inherently expensive to build. The point isn't that fewer restricts means housing prices won't climb at all, but that they won't climb as quickly. For the truly affordable segment, they're either served with old housing (like with cars), or with public housing.

seucs 8y ago

Or Vancouver. Singapore and Vienna is really a counter argument more than anything else. These are places were the government have significant control over, and are essentially undermining, the housing market. This isn't changing zoning a little bit. In Singapore the government acquired most of the land. And Austria is spending the equivalent of a defense budget each year on housing subsidies alone.

TulliusCicero 8y ago
Personally I'm fine with either the market or the government providing new housing, and ideally I think we'd have a lot of both. > This isn't changing zoning a little bit. It's true, fairly radical zoning changes are warranted. Or at least, radical by US standards. Although you probably wouldn't have to go quite as far as Singapore, since obviously US cities aren't as land restricted.
mosdl 8y ago
Except Vienna housing keeps getting more expensive as there isn't much stock available.

sizzle 8y ago

Conversely? Did I misinterpret your comment? Rent has significantly increased in the Portland metro area and gentrification is in full effect. There are vacant luxury multi-tenant properties littering the city and many more in the planning stages. As more tech companies enter the Portland market, expect this trend to accelerate.

evanlivingston 8y ago
Right, I'm agreeing with you. Portland has increased housing substantially without preserving affordability.

true_tuna 8y ago

Portland in no way kept up with adding new housing at the same rate it added jobs.