I was talking to an engineer who has a worked on a few majority buildings in NYC, SF. His take was it was mostly regulations slowing things down. Not that the

I was talking to an engineer who has a worked on a few majority buildings in NYC, SF. His take was it was mostly regulations slowing things down. Not that the regulations were overly onerous, but rather NIMBYs leverage the regulations to fight the projects every possible step of the way. Before even breaking ground, the environmental assessments would take years and close to $1M. Relatively straightforward assessments are contested by people who don't want it built, and current regulations force builders to come to yet another hearing, respond, then wait for a response, then another hearing for a decision. If they win, then the NIMBY files a lawsuit contesting the environmental hearing's decision. This is a reason why people selling fixer-uppers in SF charge way more if they have approved permits for it. The time and money spent can easily be >$100,000.