> I'd be willing to bet NIMBY antics are a large cause of this problem. SF metro area has the 4th highest rate of homeless people per capita, I have to imagine

> I'd be willing to bet NIMBY antics are a large cause of this problem. SF metro area has the 4th highest rate of homeless people per capita, I have to imagine absurdly high rents is a part of it. There's a robust correlation in US between homeless population and the stringency of zoning/land-use laws that restrict/delay/obstruct new housing: https://urbanpolicy.berkeley.edu/pdf/Raphael_homelessness_and_regulation_November_2009.pdf https://urbanpolicy.berkeley.edu/pdf/Raphael_homelessness_an... Homeless problem is downstream of NIMBY problem -- it's not an issue with "mental health" or "drug use" (sure, the most flagrant instances of homelessness have those involved, but that's because of what makes things flagrant, not what makes people homeless), it's to do with pathological overpricing and undersupply of housing (especially and most crucially at the lower end of pricing) in US. And no, "SF has earthquakes" isn't an excuse. So does Tokyo and they manage to build apartments and have rents far far lower than those in SF -- while having a /much/ higher population.