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Big disagree with this concept. If the article is accurate, it prevents Regina Daniels or any other beneficiaries from accumulating significant wealth in the th

Big disagree with this concept. If the article is accurate, it prevents Regina Daniels or any other beneficiaries from accumulating significant wealth in the the property, because resale (or presumably home equity loan) values are capped. So what does she get out of it? More stability for her family and a capped mortgage payment every month, yes, but no real chance to actually accumulate wealth. It's basically blocking the way in which the poor can join the middle class (yes I think index funds are a better investment than real estate, but I think owning your own home is perfectly fine for a lower income family). A better idea would be to deregulate housing and let developers build condos there, and she could buy one (or I'd be totally fine with government assistance in her buying one!) Way more efficient use of the land, and she could accumulate real wealth that way

seltzered_ 7y ago
You're measuring wealth in only the dimension of financial capital. What if participation in a community land trust enables an increase of social capital? (see http://www.appleseedpermaculture.com/8-forms-of-capital/ http://www.appleseedpermaculture.com/8-forms-of-capital/ )
- solotronics 7y ago
  Unfortunately if your measuring wealth in something intangible that is usually a sign your getting screwed over. If I give away all my money to random people on the street I might have gained social capital but my tangible wealth is gone.
wmf 7y ago
Many people think that Americans are over-invested in their houses. Germans, for example, don't use housing as an investment yet they are still able to save and invest in other ways. Specifically, Regina Daniels could put the difference between her super-low mortgage payment and what she would normally pay into some index funds and she would probably be net ahead.
- DeathArrow 7y ago
  Germans don't buy as much houses because renting is more affordable in Germany.
solotronics 7y ago
Houston generally has the most lax development regulations. They don't even have zoning. Almost anyone can build almost anything anywhere.
- barry-cotter 7y ago
  Just because they don’t call it zoning doesn’t mean they don’t have zoning. > Festa also rattles off a list of other policies that bolster his case that Houston effectively has zoning. > Deed restrictions: In Houston, developers create rules to prevent things like corner stores within residential neighborhoods. Those rules are called deed restrictions. Houston is unique in that it will represent residents when they try to enforce those covenants. > Density: Historically, the area within the confines of the 610 Loop have been permitted to have higher levels of density than the rest of the city. But recent changes to city policies extend the higher density levels all the way to Beltway 8. “Those are rules that tell you what you can and can’t do, based on where you are on a map,” Festa said. > Tax Increment Reinvestment Zones: The controversial tool allows certain areas within distinct boundaries to retain property tax revenue for uses within their borders. The word “zone” is right in the name. > Airports: The Houston area has three major airports, and under federal rules, the communities around them are subject to zoning requirements. “It’s a good chunk of metropolitan Houston, and it’s flat out zoning,” Festa said. > Buffering ordinance: New rules restrict tall buildings to “major activity centers” by limiting their height, set back requirements and construction styles. > Historic preservation: Residents can ensure many types of building restrictions within their communities if they get enough votes to create a historic district. > Lot sizes: City rules restrict lot sizes, but neighborhoods can petition for even tighter restrictions if they get the votes. https://kinder.rice.edu/2015/09/08/forget-what-youve-heard-houston-really-does-have-zoning-sort-of https://kinder.rice.edu/2015/09/08/forget-what-youve-heard-h...
tree3 7y ago
> it prevents... accumulating significant wealth in the the property That's the entire point- to make housing affordable, not to make housing a investment.
- hash872 7y ago
  That may be the point of the program, I'm saying I don't think it's a very good point. Owning is basically always more expensive than renting, there's taxes, insurance, endless maintenance etc. As I said in my original comment, I'm sure it gives her family more stability, but wealth accumulation via government-sponsored real estate ownership is literally a huge part of why white families have more than African America ones in this country. I think this program is missing the forest for the trees
  - TeMPOraL 7y ago
    > wealth accumulation via government-sponsored real estate ownership is literally a huge part of why white families have more than African America ones in this country There surely must be a point in which we realize a course of action is wrong and abandon it, instead of perpetuating it to be "fair" to those who joined later?
RockIslandLine 7y ago
"More stability for her family and a capped mortgage payment every month, yes, but no real chance to actually accumulate wealth." There's value in getting off the mortgage/rent treadmill entirely. It's a lot cheaper to live in a paid off house.

seltzered_ 7y ago

You're measuring wealth in only the dimension of financial capital. What if participation in a community land trust enables an increase of social capital? (see http://www.appleseedpermaculture.com/8-forms-of-capital/ http://www.appleseedpermaculture.com/8-forms-of-capital/ )

solotronics 7y ago
Unfortunately if your measuring wealth in something intangible that is usually a sign your getting screwed over. If I give away all my money to random people on the street I might have gained social capital but my tangible wealth is gone.

wmf 7y ago

Many people think that Americans are over-invested in their houses. Germans, for example, don't use housing as an investment yet they are still able to save and invest in other ways. Specifically, Regina Daniels could put the difference between her super-low mortgage payment and what she would normally pay into some index funds and she would probably be net ahead.

DeathArrow 7y ago
Germans don't buy as much houses because renting is more affordable in Germany.

solotronics 7y ago

Houston generally has the most lax development regulations. They don't even have zoning. Almost anyone can build almost anything anywhere.

barry-cotter 7y ago
Just because they don’t call it zoning doesn’t mean they don’t have zoning. > Festa also rattles off a list of other policies that bolster his case that Houston effectively has zoning. > Deed restrictions: In Houston, developers create rules to prevent things like corner stores within residential neighborhoods. Those rules are called deed restrictions. Houston is unique in that it will represent residents when they try to enforce those covenants. > Density: Historically, the area within the confines of the 610 Loop have been permitted to have higher levels of density than the rest of the city. But recent changes to city policies extend the higher density levels all the way to Beltway 8. “Those are rules that tell you what you can and can’t do, based on where you are on a map,” Festa said. > Tax Increment Reinvestment Zones: The controversial tool allows certain areas within distinct boundaries to retain property tax revenue for uses within their borders. The word “zone” is right in the name. > Airports: The Houston area has three major airports, and under federal rules, the communities around them are subject to zoning requirements. “It’s a good chunk of metropolitan Houston, and it’s flat out zoning,” Festa said. > Buffering ordinance: New rules restrict tall buildings to “major activity centers” by limiting their height, set back requirements and construction styles. > Historic preservation: Residents can ensure many types of building restrictions within their communities if they get enough votes to create a historic district. > Lot sizes: City rules restrict lot sizes, but neighborhoods can petition for even tighter restrictions if they get the votes. https://kinder.rice.edu/2015/09/08/forget-what-youve-heard-houston-really-does-have-zoning-sort-of https://kinder.rice.edu/2015/09/08/forget-what-youve-heard-h...

tree3 7y ago

> it prevents... accumulating significant wealth in the the property That's the entire point- to make housing affordable, not to make housing a investment.

hash872 7y ago
That may be the point of the program, I'm saying I don't think it's a very good point. Owning is basically always more expensive than renting, there's taxes, insurance, endless maintenance etc. As I said in my original comment, I'm sure it gives her family more stability, but wealth accumulation via government-sponsored real estate ownership is literally a huge part of why white families have more than African America ones in this country. I think this program is missing the forest for the trees
- TeMPOraL 7y ago
  > wealth accumulation via government-sponsored real estate ownership is literally a huge part of why white families have more than African America ones in this country There surely must be a point in which we realize a course of action is wrong and abandon it, instead of perpetuating it to be "fair" to those who joined later?

RockIslandLine 7y ago

"More stability for her family and a capped mortgage payment every month, yes, but no real chance to actually accumulate wealth." There's value in getting off the mortgage/rent treadmill entirely. It's a lot cheaper to live in a paid off house.