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US housing is a state-level issue that could be solved by state governments promoting high-density housing policy. Ultimately, those state governments are elect

US housing is a state-level issue that could be solved by state governments promoting high-density housing policy. Ultimately, those state governments are elected by voters, i.e. residents, including renters, and not exclusively landlords. But landlords disproportionately contribute to the finances of re-election campaigns, and thus have effectively seized control of the options offered to voters. It's fantastical, and unrealistic, to hope that improved voter education will result in better electoral outcomes and thus better policy outcomes. The root problem is in how elections are financed. Citizens United must be reversed and elections must be financed publicly, with fair financing to candidates based on the number of signatures they obtain, and equal airtime purchased from public funds. Only then will we see YIMBY candidates start to accede to positions of power and start to reverse these landlord-favorable policies.

randomdata 2y ago
The root problem is that democracy requires active engagement. It turns out the hired representatives are not mind readers. However, those with means are able to give more engagement, and thus are disproportionately represented. The squeaky wheel gets the grease, as they say. The guy who is in their representative's face every single day is going to be more apt to get his way. The people who have never even spoken to their representative, even just once, most definitely won't get their way unless by sheer coincidence. There is no solution to that problem other than to give up democracy, but the alternatives come with their own set of trade-offs. The wonderful world of people problems.
davidw 2y ago
> Only then will we see YIMBY candidates start to accede to positions of power and start to reverse these landlord-favorable policies Our governor here in Oregon, Tina Kotek, is quite YIMBY. As is the mayor of the city I live in.
kjkjadksj 2y ago
In most local elections, the majority voters are often homeowners, despite the majority of eligible voters often being renters in cities. It’s not even a money issue but a political apathy issue.
creer 2y ago
It's not a state but a very local issue (cities, neighbordhood districts). Indeed some cities do okay. The states, like California currently, can try and influence but the cities are resourceful stubborn and corrupt and still can block things at multiple other levels. In the US, the federal level also very much influences things since for example it is federal institutions which buy the most mortgages (and they decide what kinds of homes qualify). For more examples, the federal level regulates interest rates (the main component of mortgage interest rates) and deductibility of housing costs under federal income tax law (higher than state income taxes for many people). And elections only go so far because voters are not equally distributed among populations. Even renters tend to not vote but be vocal NIMBYes.
- solatic 2y ago
  Local districts have only exactly as many powers as granted to them by state governments. What was granted to them in the name of expediency and locality of control can be taken back by the state government, which is the ultimate sovereign controlling these matters. That's why this is a state issue - the localities are corrupt but the state could fix that by removing them from the equation. Mortgages and interest rates affect prices, but not the decision over whether to build more and how much.

randomdata 2y ago

The root problem is that democracy requires active engagement. It turns out the hired representatives are not mind readers. However, those with means are able to give more engagement, and thus are disproportionately represented. The squeaky wheel gets the grease, as they say. The guy who is in their representative's face every single day is going to be more apt to get his way. The people who have never even spoken to their representative, even just once, most definitely won't get their way unless by sheer coincidence. There is no solution to that problem other than to give up democracy, but the alternatives come with their own set of trade-offs. The wonderful world of people problems.

davidw 2y ago

> Only then will we see YIMBY candidates start to accede to positions of power and start to reverse these landlord-favorable policies Our governor here in Oregon, Tina Kotek, is quite YIMBY. As is the mayor of the city I live in.

kjkjadksj 2y ago

In most local elections, the majority voters are often homeowners, despite the majority of eligible voters often being renters in cities. It’s not even a money issue but a political apathy issue.

creer 2y ago

It's not a state but a very local issue (cities, neighbordhood districts). Indeed some cities do okay. The states, like California currently, can try and influence but the cities are resourceful stubborn and corrupt and still can block things at multiple other levels. In the US, the federal level also very much influences things since for example it is federal institutions which buy the most mortgages (and they decide what kinds of homes qualify). For more examples, the federal level regulates interest rates (the main component of mortgage interest rates) and deductibility of housing costs under federal income tax law (higher than state income taxes for many people). And elections only go so far because voters are not equally distributed among populations. Even renters tend to not vote but be vocal NIMBYes.

solatic 2y ago
Local districts have only exactly as many powers as granted to them by state governments. What was granted to them in the name of expediency and locality of control can be taken back by the state government, which is the ultimate sovereign controlling these matters. That's why this is a state issue - the localities are corrupt but the state could fix that by removing them from the equation. Mortgages and interest rates affect prices, but not the decision over whether to build more and how much.