> Another example is Israel’s approach to urban densification. Israel increased apartment supply in Tel Aviv by around half through a rule known as ‘TAMA 38’. U

> Another example is Israel’s approach to urban densification. Israel increased apartment supply in Tel Aviv by around half through a rule known as ‘TAMA 38’. Under this rule, if 80% of a given apartment block’s residents agree, they can vote for redevelopment, demolish the block, and build a larger one This was absolutely horrible. So, TAMA 38 was originally a plan for protecting buildings against earthquakes: If the residents undertake a fortification of their building, they get some extra rights in terms of built area on their property. In practice, the regions where an earthquake is more likely have seen almost no use of this arrangement - because fortification is expensive, and real-estate there is not very lucrative. But the Tel-Aviv/Gush Dan region, where there's a housing bubble, has seen massive use of this program - but of course not by residents. Rather, real-estate entrepreneurs make contracts with residents to perform the fortification, or an entire reconstruction of the building, in exchange for using the extra building rights for more apartments. But of course - nobody had any concern for the space around the building; the importance of unpaved ground, trees and vegetation for an urban environment; the extra pressure on all sorts of infrastructure to accommodate a denser populace etc. There are also aesthetic concerns, but let's put those aside. The result has been a massive windfall for such entrepreneurs, and a significant degradation of the quality of life where this occurs - not because of the density itself, but because of lack of urban planning to support it.