The planning of housing stock is a seesaw. On one end, you have industrial capital, and on the other you have financial capital. Industrial capital will always

The planning of housing stock is a seesaw. On one end, you have industrial capital, and on the other you have financial capital. Industrial capital will always lobby for lowing the cost of housing, as cheap housing will make it possible to pay out less in salary. Financial capital, on the other hand, will always lobby for increasing the cost of housing, as higher rents will produce more in return. During the fantastic industrial expansion which characterized the growth of the world's great cities, industrial capital dominated, other than in very small pockets. Workers flocked to cities, whose planning boards were in favor of expanding stock -- so incentivized by industrial capital. At some point during the last generation, the power consensus flipped: industrial interests waned, and financial interests exploded. In our new economy, financial capital holds all the cards. Predictably, planning has followed where the incentives are. Making the world turn simply doesn't as many workers as it used to -- especially in cities. Industries that do require cheap housing stock for labor typically opt to build on the outskirts of town. So entrenched are financial interests. The answer is to change the incentives. Tax the crap out of real estate, and the people who hold real estate. Let them put their vast wealth into sectors which actually build and invent new things to make our lives better.