4 ms·

It continues to strike me as odd that there isn't more focus on building high-density highrise housing in SF. Is this related to earthquake danger, historical p

by FreakyT 12y ago

It continues to strike me as odd that there isn't more focus on building high-density highrise housing in SF. Is this related to earthquake danger, historical preservation, idiocy on the part of local politicians, or some combination of these?

walshemj 12y ago
NIMBY Squared
tn13 12y ago
The local politicians and their votes are mostly s. The rent control laws have made affordable housing rare but luxury housing and office spaces reasonably priced. The problem is further compounded by the zoning laws, parking space related laws and the local community which is consistently voting against any housing projects to make sure their property rates do not go down because of increased supply.
batbomb 12y ago
Established and older residents, especially those without children, see no reason we should be "Manhattanized" so more people can live here. They "like SF just the way it is, thank you". If you don't have kids, and you have rent control, you never really need to upgrade your 1BR apartment once you got it. Secondly, there is no upzoning, and subsequently no increase in density, without eviction, thanks to the rental market. Evictions aren't popular. The Tenderloin is completely insulated from any of this. Historical preservation is bogus, but has a history. The reason that some people argue for largely have to do with the projects in the Western Addition, which bulldozed a bunch of victorians to make what most people consider an eyesore. Local politicians don't really care too much. The reason being is any action they take pissed off established residents, who voted them in. That's changing a bit, as more people feel the pressure of the rental market and evictions. Still, there's more of an attempt to protect people who are established then there is an attempt to accommodate those who actually need housing, especially those in the middle class.
discardorama 12y ago
And, to add to what everyone else said: there are out-of-towners who are buying up this newly-built property; either as a place to stash some cash (people from China, Russia), or as a crashpad for when they come in to town (from other parts of Bay Area) for an event or something.
- sdkaufman78 12y ago
  Not sure why parent is being downvoted. I personally know several rich (corrupt?) people from China who have bought or are actively shopping for homes here in the SF bay area. They still work & live in China, but from what they've told me, their goal is to 1) Buy a house for their kids studying in the US; 2) Launder their money; 3) Own a property outside of China as an investment; 4) Have a safe house in case they need to flee the country. The bay area is a popular choice for such people due to the high concentration of Chinese immigrants / Chinese Americans already living here. I'm not passing judgement, just presenting facts from personal experience.
  - thecage411 12y ago
    people admit that their goal is to launder their money?
  - discardorama 12y ago
    Yeah, I don't know why I was downvoted too... I was speaking from personal experience also. I happened to be friends with a realtor, and he would tell me about the crazy bids he was getting from China. A property in Pacific Heights got 2 Chinese bidders in a bidding war, both buying it sight-unseen, all cash, from China. Crazy times. And I have friends in the Peninsula who have such crashpads in the City (unfortunately, I didn't win the IPO lottery like they did). So I'm not blaming "furriners" or "1%", just stating what my limited experience has been.

by FreakyT 12y ago

walshemj 12y ago

NIMBY Squared

tn13 12y ago

The local politicians and their votes are mostly s. The rent control laws have made affordable housing rare but luxury housing and office spaces reasonably priced. The problem is further compounded by the zoning laws, parking space related laws and the local community which is consistently voting against any housing projects to make sure their property rates do not go down because of increased supply.

batbomb 12y ago

Established and older residents, especially those without children, see no reason we should be "Manhattanized" so more people can live here. They "like SF just the way it is, thank you". If you don't have kids, and you have rent control, you never really need to upgrade your 1BR apartment once you got it. Secondly, there is no upzoning, and subsequently no increase in density, without eviction, thanks to the rental market. Evictions aren't popular. The Tenderloin is completely insulated from any of this. Historical preservation is bogus, but has a history. The reason that some people argue for largely have to do with the projects in the Western Addition, which bulldozed a bunch of victorians to make what most people consider an eyesore. Local politicians don't really care too much. The reason being is any action they take pissed off established residents, who voted them in. That's changing a bit, as more people feel the pressure of the rental market and evictions. Still, there's more of an attempt to protect people who are established then there is an attempt to accommodate those who actually need housing, especially those in the middle class.

discardorama 12y ago

And, to add to what everyone else said: there are out-of-towners who are buying up this newly-built property; either as a place to stash some cash (people from China, Russia), or as a crashpad for when they come in to town (from other parts of Bay Area) for an event or something.

sdkaufman78 12y ago
Not sure why parent is being downvoted. I personally know several rich (corrupt?) people from China who have bought or are actively shopping for homes here in the SF bay area. They still work & live in China, but from what they've told me, their goal is to 1) Buy a house for their kids studying in the US; 2) Launder their money; 3) Own a property outside of China as an investment; 4) Have a safe house in case they need to flee the country. The bay area is a popular choice for such people due to the high concentration of Chinese immigrants / Chinese Americans already living here. I'm not passing judgement, just presenting facts from personal experience.
- thecage411 12y ago
  people admit that their goal is to launder their money?
- discardorama 12y ago
  Yeah, I don't know why I was downvoted too... I was speaking from personal experience also. I happened to be friends with a realtor, and he would tell me about the crazy bids he was getting from China. A property in Pacific Heights got 2 Chinese bidders in a bidding war, both buying it sight-unseen, all cash, from China. Crazy times. And I have friends in the Peninsula who have such crashpads in the City (unfortunately, I didn't win the IPO lottery like they did). So I'm not blaming "furriners" or "1%", just stating what my limited experience has been.