5 ms·
Gentrification is a symptom of limited supply. The way to reduce housing prices in the face of increased demand is to flood the market with supply, by increasin
by nickff 6y ago
Gentrification is a symptom of limited supply. The way to reduce housing prices in the face of increased demand is to flood the market with supply, by increasing high-density zoning, and loosening requirements such as parking. SF will probably respond with even more rent control, which won't work.
- jjoonathan 6y agoWell, it will work for the intended purpose, which is to drive up rents even further, it just won't work for the stated purpose.
- topher515 6y agoYes, yes, a thousand times yes! The number 1, 2, 3 and 4 problems the Bay Area specifically (and CA generally) faces are an undersupply of housing. Fixing this problem will be huge steps towards addressing homelessness, gentrification, desegregating schools, and general wealth inequality. If there is a focus on high density housing near public transit, then this will also have a positive impact on greenhouse gas emissions
- nickff 6y agoI would like to add that rent controls increase all types of pollution; they increase average commuting distance, because the rent controls make it expensive to move closer to work (decreasing mobility).
- dredmorbius 6y agoLack of rent control ... seems to have achieved the same result. Land value tax (and relaxed/rationalised zoning & building codes) seem a more likely route.
- umvi 6y agoHigh density housing? That sounds like it's going to devalue my own property. Not in my back yard!
- bradlys 6y agoNot sure if you're being sarcastic. From what I've heard, if you own a SFH and SFH are being torn down for apartments then your SFH becomes more desirable over time because SFH are less common. (Presuming finite land and SFHs) And if a developer can make 5x the housing on your one lot then probably $$$ - right?
- CalRobert 6y agoIt would help if they recognized homeowners as a cartel.
- i_love_limes 6y agoThis is true that gentrification is a problem with increased demand that is not meet with an increase of supply, but untrue in it's solution. You can't infinitely scale up the supply for the same plots of land. You can't even 10x it. Also, this entirely ignores what to do with the people and properties of the area that is being gentrified. I see this opinion far too often from people who have never studied urban planning and development. It smells like of those 'I took an econ 101 class, let me tell you how the world works' kind of opinions.
- nickff 6y agoYou can't increase it infinitely, but you can increase it a lot. Single family homes are 4-10 units/acre, townhomes are 20-40 units, and apartments are 50-100. Here is one of my favorite illustrations: http://densityatlas.org/measuring/far.shtml http://densityatlas.org/measuring/far.shtml Another nice one: https://twitter.com/euanmills/status/969132807548260352/photo/1 https://twitter.com/euanmills/status/969132807548260352/phot...
- AlexTWithBeard 6y agoSo... what should we do? Kick these "single families" out of their homes, because they take too much space in such a sought-after area?
- nickff 6y agoWhen you allow higher density, the land values increase, and people 'volunteer' their homes for development.
- temp-dude-87844 6y agoIn this scenario, existing homeowners volunteer to be bought out and move away, removing themselves from the community. Existing landlords volunteer to be bought out, and kick out their renters, leaving them to move away and remove themselves from the community. These homes are demolished and the lots become a construction site for 6-18 months, then the freshly built housing goes to rent or sale at market rate. When they're occupied, they will be filled by newcomers to the community. You look back at this neighborhood in five years. Wouldn't you consider it to have gentrified?