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There are ~30 vacant homes per homeless person in the US. Tell me how that makes any sense.

by blurbleblurble 4y ago

almost_usual 4y ago
People would rather be homeless in a temperate climate than live in a dilapidated building in the rust belt?
- blurbleblurble 4y ago
  I hear your point, and I wonder what the stats are on livability of these vacant homes. Cause I bet the other side of the spectrum is true too: luxury units that just sit there because the price point is so high. But beyond that, housing as investment property alienates people from the natural reward of caring for housing. We ought to be leaving into and communicating peoples' natural desire to make home livable. Instead we rip people from it, we punish people by forcing them to switch apartments when they're perfectly happy. So many people effectively live in in slow motion life long exile.
justrealist 4y ago
Taking a mentally ill fentanyl addict from San Francisco and dropping them in a condemned house in Scranton PA is not actually going to solve the problems you think it will.
- notch898a 4y ago
  It would save a lot of money on demolition though. The plumbing, cabinets, appliances, doors, ducting, and everything not fixed to the frame would get removed for free and it would be very easy to bulldoze after the house catches fire from people trying to stay warm inside without paying a utility bill.
- LoganDark 4y ago
  > a mentally ill fentanyl addict In a lot of cases they wouldn't have become mentally ill or a fentanyl addict if they weren't homeless. Yes, addiction drives tons of people into homelessness, but homelessness can also cause addiction since a homeless life kinda sucks.
- Joeri 4y ago
  There’s actually a philosophy called “housing first” that says you cannot solve those other problems without housing those people. 99 percent invisible did a podcast series on the reality and nuance of homelessness. It is the best take I’ve seen and really opened my eyes on a number of things. Episode 3 covers housing first, but I would recommend going through the whole thing. https://99percentinvisible.org/need/ https://99percentinvisible.org/need/
  - blurbleblurble 4y ago
    Exactly! It often does solve those problems when combined with other necessary resources like mental health care and help finding community and meaningful ways to occupy time, like getting a job or going back to school. Housing first is evidence based too. And cheaper than emergency services. And when done right much more dignified. Yet here we have this society full of punitive know it all skeptics who don't actually seem care about the evidence quite as much as they care about dominating social structures that help them feel better about their insecurities.
Balgair 4y ago
Some of the school districts near-ish me are so desperate for teachers that they will up and just give teachers a house and a car. It's not prime real estate and not a new car, but you get the gist. There are hardly any takers. As has always been true in real estate: location, location, location

There are ~30 vacant homes per homeless person in the US. Tell me how that makes any sense.

almost_usual 4y ago

People would rather be homeless in a temperate climate than live in a dilapidated building in the rust belt?

blurbleblurble 4y ago
I hear your point, and I wonder what the stats are on livability of these vacant homes. Cause I bet the other side of the spectrum is true too: luxury units that just sit there because the price point is so high. But beyond that, housing as investment property alienates people from the natural reward of caring for housing. We ought to be leaving into and communicating peoples' natural desire to make home livable. Instead we rip people from it, we punish people by forcing them to switch apartments when they're perfectly happy. So many people effectively live in in slow motion life long exile.

justrealist 4y ago

Taking a mentally ill fentanyl addict from San Francisco and dropping them in a condemned house in Scranton PA is not actually going to solve the problems you think it will.

notch898a 4y ago
It would save a lot of money on demolition though. The plumbing, cabinets, appliances, doors, ducting, and everything not fixed to the frame would get removed for free and it would be very easy to bulldoze after the house catches fire from people trying to stay warm inside without paying a utility bill.
LoganDark 4y ago
> a mentally ill fentanyl addict In a lot of cases they wouldn't have become mentally ill or a fentanyl addict if they weren't homeless. Yes, addiction drives tons of people into homelessness, but homelessness can also cause addiction since a homeless life kinda sucks.
Joeri 4y ago
There’s actually a philosophy called “housing first” that says you cannot solve those other problems without housing those people. 99 percent invisible did a podcast series on the reality and nuance of homelessness. It is the best take I’ve seen and really opened my eyes on a number of things. Episode 3 covers housing first, but I would recommend going through the whole thing. https://99percentinvisible.org/need/ https://99percentinvisible.org/need/
- blurbleblurble 4y ago
  Exactly! It often does solve those problems when combined with other necessary resources like mental health care and help finding community and meaningful ways to occupy time, like getting a job or going back to school. Housing first is evidence based too. And cheaper than emergency services. And when done right much more dignified. Yet here we have this society full of punitive know it all skeptics who don't actually seem care about the evidence quite as much as they care about dominating social structures that help them feel better about their insecurities.

Balgair 4y ago

Some of the school districts near-ish me are so desperate for teachers that they will up and just give teachers a house and a car. It's not prime real estate and not a new car, but you get the gist. There are hardly any takers. As has always been true in real estate: location, location, location