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The housing glut simply means housing is overpriced, which is something that's true to varying degrees in most cities globally. The fact that this is happening
by api 8y ago
The housing glut simply means housing is overpriced, which is something that's true to varying degrees in most cities globally. The fact that this is happening even when there are so many empty units shows that this isn't a simple supply and demand problem. The problem is that housing is being used as a financial instrument, not a place to live.
- pcwalton 8y agoYour comment might be relevant to e.g. Vancouver, but China has completely different problems. In China, nobody is buying the houses at all. Not real estate speculators, not people who intend to reside there. Nobody. It absolutely is a supply and demand problem.
- metalliqaz 8y agoThe article seems to dispute this claim. It says that nearly half of the outstanding real estate debt is held on properties that are unoccupied.
- pcwalton 8y agoI took that to mean properties that are held by the developer, where the developer financed them with debt.
- r00fus 8y agoChina should look to what Vancouver did for a tax on unoccupied housing - perhaps amplified as needed. However, China is also a centrally controlled, single party state that is willing to experiment - if they haven't done it, it's likely because they don't want to.