San Francisco Progressives Declare War on Affordable Housing

The U.S. is running out of places for people to live. Rent is a  bigger and bigger part of our cost of living. Here is an index of rental  prices divided by median household income:

The Rent Is Too Darn High How average U.S. rent has changed relative to median income.

 Lots of people have been wondering what to do about this problem. One  proposed solution is to deregulate housing and encourage denser  development. This is called the “market urbanism”  approach, because it relies on deregulation -- though it would also  certainly require big government investments in mass transit. Another  term for this pro-density agenda is “Yimby,” an acronym standing for “yes, in my back yard.”A related approach is land-value taxation, also called the “Henry George tax,” after the 19th  century economist who came up with the idea. This is basically just the  idea of giving property tax exemptions for urban buildings -- a  straightforward way to encourage density.But many people have  been fighting these pro-density ideas. Some are probably afraid that  more residents -- especially more poor residents -- will raise crime  or lower property values. Others prize their open space and beautiful  views, and fear the aesthetic effects of eliminating urban height  restrictions. Still others believe that when new people move into city  neighborhoods, it disrupts the traditional character and culture of  these places. These anti-density approaches are often referred to as  “Nimby,” for “not in my back yard.”

Nimbys  often have another idea for how to lower rents -- kick industry out of  their cities. Though this policy invariably ends up hurting the urban  poor and working class, it is often painted as a “progressive” approach,  especially in California. It also happens to be bad for regional and  national productivity.San Francisco provides a cautionary tale.  In the last decade, the city has been flooded with technology workers,  pushing rents into the stratosphere -- a one-bedroom apartment costs  around $3,500 a month to rent. Rent control is in effect, but that has just increased the incentive for evictions. Despite efforts  by anti-eviction activists, the sheer size and persistence of the  economic incentives involved are impossible to resist for long. 

More here: http://www.bloomberg.com/view/articles/2016-08-02/san-francisco-progressives-declare-war-on-affordable-housing?cmpid%3D=socialflow-twitter-view&utm_campaign=socialflow-organic&utm_content=view&utm_medium=social&utm_source=twitter