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Productivity increases -> wages go up -> "30% of salary on rent" goes up -> rent goes up -> cost of everything goes up We could arrest pretty much all cost of

Productivity increases -> wages go up -> "30% of salary on rent" goes up -> rent goes up -> cost of everything goes up We could arrest pretty much all cost of living growth if all renters (both businesses and individuals) just decided not to continuously agree to pay higher prices for the same land/apartments/buildings.

robertlagrant 2y ago
> Productivity increases -> wages go up -> "30% of salary on rent" goes up -> rent goes up -> cost of everything goes up Yes wages might go up (someone who can use Sharepoint[0] is probably more efficient than someone who can use a physical filing system) but you need far fewer people to do it. So costs can still go down. > We could arrest pretty much all cost of living growth if all renters (both businesses and individuals) just decided not to continuously agree to pay higher prices for the same land/apartments/buildings. I agree that most of cost of living is housing-related, but rent price increases are a function of population increasing faster than housing. That's the thing to address. [0] or something good
- llamaimperative 2y ago
  I didn't say the costs of individual items or services never go down, I said the "cost of living," i.e. broad-based growth in costs over long periods of time, goes up with productivity. > I agree that most of cost of living is housing-related, but rent price increases are a function of population increasing faster than housing. That's the thing to address. Yes we should build a whole lot more and it will slow residential price growth, but no, in general this will not actually reduce the cost of living. For example, this doesn't address the increased competition (i.e. increased prices) for commercial spaces, which gets baked into every coffee, garment, or meal you purchase.
  - robertlagrant 2y ago
    Okay, but coffee and meals are luxuries to purchase, not necessities. And it's extremely clear that the thing that's rocketed up in price, and delivered less and less over time, has been housing. We (e.g. here in the UK) now pay far more than our grandparents did for smaller dwellings. This is the main cost of living increase. And it's baked into all goods you buy far more than commercial rent, because every employee in the supply chain has to be able to afford to live.

robertlagrant 2y ago

> Productivity increases -> wages go up -> "30% of salary on rent" goes up -> rent goes up -> cost of everything goes up Yes wages might go up (someone who can use Sharepoint[0] is probably more efficient than someone who can use a physical filing system) but you need far fewer people to do it. So costs can still go down. > We could arrest pretty much all cost of living growth if all renters (both businesses and individuals) just decided not to continuously agree to pay higher prices for the same land/apartments/buildings. I agree that most of cost of living is housing-related, but rent price increases are a function of population increasing faster than housing. That's the thing to address. [0] or something good

llamaimperative 2y ago
I didn't say the costs of individual items or services never go down, I said the "cost of living," i.e. broad-based growth in costs over long periods of time, goes up with productivity. > I agree that most of cost of living is housing-related, but rent price increases are a function of population increasing faster than housing. That's the thing to address. Yes we should build a whole lot more and it will slow residential price growth, but no, in general this will not actually reduce the cost of living. For example, this doesn't address the increased competition (i.e. increased prices) for commercial spaces, which gets baked into every coffee, garment, or meal you purchase.
- robertlagrant 2y ago
  Okay, but coffee and meals are luxuries to purchase, not necessities. And it's extremely clear that the thing that's rocketed up in price, and delivered less and less over time, has been housing. We (e.g. here in the UK) now pay far more than our grandparents did for smaller dwellings. This is the main cost of living increase. And it's baked into all goods you buy far more than commercial rent, because every employee in the supply chain has to be able to afford to live.