> The only factor stopping them from building apartments for $1000 a month is a profit motive At least in the Bay Area the high cost of housing is partially ca

> The only factor stopping them from building apartments for $1000 a month is a profit motive At least in the Bay Area the high cost of housing is partially caused by construction labor costs, that are driven by the high cost of housing. There’s also a problem where an entire region generally has the same construction costs, but certain areas can command higher rents... Of course the developers are going to build where the most profits are. While I don’t believe deregulation is a panacea, reducing regulations to make lower cost areas more competitive with the higher profit areas could be beneficial. For example development impact fees could be reduced, smaller unit sizes could be legalized and the legal process could be streamlined to reduce legal costs and uncertainty. That could in theory make projects in cheaper areas more competive with “upscale” neighborhoods. Of course my analysis ignores the impacts that building in cheaper areas can have on the existing residents in terms of displacement, which is why deregulation is only part of the solution. Tenant rights and subsidized housing are equally important.