4 ms·

First we need to realize that rising home "value" just means rising prices. Our policy is to essentially make housing more expensive since pre-existing home own

First we need to realize that rising home "value" just means rising prices. Our policy is to essentially make housing more expensive since pre-existing home owners benefit.

rootusrootus 5y ago
It's also probably too late to really do anything about it, other than try to slow it down. A price crash would help people who want to buy their first home, but it would bring also fair amount of economic devastation along for the ride.
- chordalkeyboard 5y ago
  not really, a price correction would just reset prices to where they belong.
  - adamsmith143 5y ago
    And put countless people into upside down mortgages as well as give investors/corporations an even bigger incentive to grab properties at a premium discount.
- brink 5y ago
  Unaffordable homes _is_ economic devastation. How are new generations supposed to prosper when they cannot afford a place to live?
  - swagasaurus-rex 5y ago
    It's like saying affordable healthcare is economic devastation because insurance companies and hospitals will lose profits. It's completely ignoring the massive wealth drain on the average American. There's an enormous opportunity cost.
    - fancifalmanima 5y ago
      Don't something like 65% of Americans own their homes? https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Home-ownership_in_the_United_States https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Home-ownership_in_the_United_S... Realistically, we're in a place where significant prices increases (which has happened, obviously ) and a significant price drop would both have a significant economic impact. Both groups (home owners, and renters) are large. And while a chunk of people that own homes are investors, there are a ton of people that own their home and pretty much depend on selling and capturing the equity in the future for either their next house or retirement. Many of those people are just middle class folks, well into the fat part of the bell curve. Obviously on the flip side, more expensive homes makes it more difficult for new homeowners to buy in, and break out of the renting cycle, build equity, build wealth, etc, etc, and that's also bad. Just wanted to point out the flip side of it.
    - rootusrootus 5y ago
      Are you going to reset the mortgages for all the Americans who already own their home? Give them rebates if they've already paid it off? I get that this seems like an unpopular observation on HN. But still, any significant price reset on real estate in the US would cause a LOT of people to lose a huge amount of their net worth. And if they recently bought their first home, they will then be massively underwater with all of the negatives that brings. It's pretty easy to say that only investors are going to lose, without appreciating that you're advocating for destroying more than half the population in order to provide a better future for the remainder. Think of a better plan.
- onion2k 5y ago
  A price crash would help people who want to buy their first home... It absolutely wouldn't because first time buyers would still be competing with investors, except the investors would be able to buy properties in cash with no need to spend time arranging mortgages, and with guarantees that they won't need to drop out of the sale because it'd happen so fast, which would be very appealing to sellers. Plus, investors would still be able to outbid private buyers no matter even if prices are lower. Everything about selling a house favors selling to an investor (apart from morality maybe). At this point a house price crash without legislation to block corporate investment in housing stock would likely see a massive shift of ownership from individuals to corporations.
micromacrofoot 5y ago
Sure, I don't think individual homeowners are the enemy... it's the large investors that treat housing stock like gold to lock away in a safe. Some large investors don't even operate as landlords (which is another industry that could use a cap), they'll buy new units in managed buildings and keep them vacant.
chrisseaton 5y ago
> First we need to realize that rising home "value" just means rising prices. Genuine value of a property often raises. For example access to a new train station. Access to a school that starts performing better. Features that people want where the supply is going down.

First we need to realize that rising home "value" just means rising prices. Our policy is to essentially make housing more expensive since pre-existing home owners benefit.

rootusrootus 5y ago

It's also probably too late to really do anything about it, other than try to slow it down. A price crash would help people who want to buy their first home, but it would bring also fair amount of economic devastation along for the ride.

chordalkeyboard 5y ago
not really, a price correction would just reset prices to where they belong.
- adamsmith143 5y ago
  And put countless people into upside down mortgages as well as give investors/corporations an even bigger incentive to grab properties at a premium discount.
brink 5y ago
Unaffordable homes _is_ economic devastation. How are new generations supposed to prosper when they cannot afford a place to live?
- swagasaurus-rex 5y ago
  It's like saying affordable healthcare is economic devastation because insurance companies and hospitals will lose profits. It's completely ignoring the massive wealth drain on the average American. There's an enormous opportunity cost.
  - fancifalmanima 5y ago
    Don't something like 65% of Americans own their homes? https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Home-ownership_in_the_United_States https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Home-ownership_in_the_United_S... Realistically, we're in a place where significant prices increases (which has happened, obviously ) and a significant price drop would both have a significant economic impact. Both groups (home owners, and renters) are large. And while a chunk of people that own homes are investors, there are a ton of people that own their home and pretty much depend on selling and capturing the equity in the future for either their next house or retirement. Many of those people are just middle class folks, well into the fat part of the bell curve. Obviously on the flip side, more expensive homes makes it more difficult for new homeowners to buy in, and break out of the renting cycle, build equity, build wealth, etc, etc, and that's also bad. Just wanted to point out the flip side of it.
  - rootusrootus 5y ago
    Are you going to reset the mortgages for all the Americans who already own their home? Give them rebates if they've already paid it off? I get that this seems like an unpopular observation on HN. But still, any significant price reset on real estate in the US would cause a LOT of people to lose a huge amount of their net worth. And if they recently bought their first home, they will then be massively underwater with all of the negatives that brings. It's pretty easy to say that only investors are going to lose, without appreciating that you're advocating for destroying more than half the population in order to provide a better future for the remainder. Think of a better plan.
onion2k 5y ago
A price crash would help people who want to buy their first home... It absolutely wouldn't because first time buyers would still be competing with investors, except the investors would be able to buy properties in cash with no need to spend time arranging mortgages, and with guarantees that they won't need to drop out of the sale because it'd happen so fast, which would be very appealing to sellers. Plus, investors would still be able to outbid private buyers no matter even if prices are lower. Everything about selling a house favors selling to an investor (apart from morality maybe). At this point a house price crash without legislation to block corporate investment in housing stock would likely see a massive shift of ownership from individuals to corporations.

micromacrofoot 5y ago

Sure, I don't think individual homeowners are the enemy... it's the large investors that treat housing stock like gold to lock away in a safe. Some large investors don't even operate as landlords (which is another industry that could use a cap), they'll buy new units in managed buildings and keep them vacant.

chrisseaton 5y ago

> First we need to realize that rising home "value" just means rising prices. Genuine value of a property often raises. For example access to a new train station. Access to a school that starts performing better. Features that people want where the supply is going down.