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I think the only solution to high rents and home prices is to build more and more supply. But strangely there is opposition to this from both sides of the polit

I think the only solution to high rents and home prices is to build more and more supply. But strangely there is opposition to this from both sides of the political spectrum. Left opposes it in the name of “preserving neighborhoods”, conservative wealthy home owners dont want new inventory to reduce their real estate valuations, and developers oppose it because it will eat into their profits.

mixmastamyk 7y ago
Agreed except for last part. Devs want to build homes, as that's what they do.
- mantas 7y ago
  Nah. Build too much and your margin gets slimmer and slimmer. Build less and get same profit with less work while keeping the market hungry for the future.
  - mixmastamyk 7y ago
    > Build too much… Thankfully, that's not a problem anywhere in places with skyrocketing rents.
    - objektif 7y ago
      It actually is, otherwise you would have seen Manhattan skyline reach the end of earth but it does not. Premium condos demand such high prices that developers dont have incentive to over supply the market.
      - mixmastamyk 7y ago
        The housing shortage is real, discussion of niche exceptions is not a great use of time.
        mantas 7y ago
        The problem is that there's no economic incentive to solve that shortage. Numbers just don't add up. Existing city residents wouldn't be that happy if their municipality started building shitload of public buildings using their tax money. Those money would be redirected from other issues that are important to current inhabitants, their real estate value would plummet and they get much densier city that comes with all the associated problems. On top of that, cheap rents would make the city more interesting for more people. So rents would start raising again and we're at step #1... But with more crowded public services.
        mixmastamyk 7y ago
        Doesn't need to be public investment, there are incentives for some but not others, and yes the situation is complicated.
dvorak365 7y ago
The left has no issue with building more supply. The issue they tend to have is when housing is commodified - the new units being built are for maximizing private profit, not number of people housed. (The former tends to lead to the breakup of established communities as they get priced out of their longtime homes). Lefties I know are incredibly excited about the prospect of massive construction projects to build more public and social housing.

mixmastamyk 7y ago

Agreed except for last part. Devs want to build homes, as that's what they do.

mantas 7y ago
Nah. Build too much and your margin gets slimmer and slimmer. Build less and get same profit with less work while keeping the market hungry for the future.
- mixmastamyk 7y ago
  > Build too much… Thankfully, that's not a problem anywhere in places with skyrocketing rents.
  - objektif 7y ago
    It actually is, otherwise you would have seen Manhattan skyline reach the end of earth but it does not. Premium condos demand such high prices that developers dont have incentive to over supply the market.
    - mixmastamyk 7y ago
      The housing shortage is real, discussion of niche exceptions is not a great use of time.
      - mantas 7y ago
        The problem is that there's no economic incentive to solve that shortage. Numbers just don't add up. Existing city residents wouldn't be that happy if their municipality started building shitload of public buildings using their tax money. Those money would be redirected from other issues that are important to current inhabitants, their real estate value would plummet and they get much densier city that comes with all the associated problems. On top of that, cheap rents would make the city more interesting for more people. So rents would start raising again and we're at step #1... But with more crowded public services.
        mixmastamyk 7y ago
        Doesn't need to be public investment, there are incentives for some but not others, and yes the situation is complicated.

dvorak365 7y ago

The left has no issue with building more supply. The issue they tend to have is when housing is commodified - the new units being built are for maximizing private profit, not number of people housed. (The former tends to lead to the breakup of established communities as they get priced out of their longtime homes). Lefties I know are incredibly excited about the prospect of massive construction projects to build more public and social housing.