5 ms·
Any small town has two problems: * influx of tourism and remote owners -> rising prices * lack of tourism or property interest -> slow death I am not sure wh
by prostoalex 6y ago
Any small town has two problems:
* influx of tourism and remote owners -> rising prices
* lack of tourism or property interest -> slow death
I am not sure what would be the right public policy to balance the two extremes.
Maybe Hawaii has the right idea with tiered property taxation - the longer you reside there, the lower your property tax becomes?
- asdff 6y agoPrices shouldn't rise if you are allowed to build enough supply to meet demand. A lack of property interest isn't necessarily a bad thing for a place. Land isn't for speculation, it's for use.
- diveandfight 6y agoTiered property taxation hasn't solved the the problems OP has described for Oahu; or Hawaii as a whole for that matter. For example, Local NIMBYist restrictions, mostly those individuals that have resided there for a long time (and have the lower property tax rate you describe), have resulted in areas immediately adjacent to 40-story downtown developments being zoned exclusively for single-family homes; see Kaimuki, Upper Tantalus, Manoa, Punchbowl (to an extent), etc. Consequently, even homes built over 80 yrs ago with only ~1,300 sqft sell for about $1.1 million; https://www.zillow.com/homedetails/1001-Belser-St-Honolulu-HI-96816/601638_zpid/ https://www.zillow.com/homedetails/1001-Belser-St-Honolulu-H.... The majority of people employed in hospitality and trades that support the local tourist economy (electricians, masons, carpenters, etc.) are increasingly driven to the west side; where commutes to the city can easily be 1-2 hours normally (pre-COVID). This eventually becomes such a stressor that many of the people working these skilled trades leave for the mainland.