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This wouldn't be necessary if we weren't using zoning to restrict supply. The restrictions are what cause scarcity, and it's the scarcity that drives up prices.
by Schiendelman 4mo ago
This wouldn't be necessary if we weren't using zoning to restrict supply. The restrictions are what cause scarcity, and it's the scarcity that drives up prices. Land owners are already well incentivized not to let housing sit empty, unless their housing's value is being artificially pushed upward through the scarcity we create.
Basically, if we quit creating the housing problem with zoning restrictions, you wouldn't see housing sit empty, and it wouldn't matter anyway because the motivated self-interest of FAR more people would build housing to meet demand.
- fragmede 4mo agoHaving had a second to think, it's rent control that's the issue, so the solution would be to get rid of that. Totally politically untenable, but rent control is why landlords are incentivized to leave places vacant.
- Schiendelman 4mo agoEven without rent control, it's often easier to leave a place empty because it keeps your risk lower. In places that allow supply to keep up with demand, notably Japan, buildings depreciate fairly quickly, so your investment goes away if you aren't actively monetizing it.