Making sense of what’s going on in the housing market

Re:Making sense of what’s going on in the housing market by tengbretson on Wednesday April 21, 2021 @11:27AM (#26890913)

The article says that single family zoning rules are causing the shortage that drives up the price we're seeing right now. So they argue that the solution is to open up those restrictions so that more multi-unit buildings can be built and that this will "break the restrictions on homeownership in America." Multi-unit buildings are overwhelmingly more common to be rentals than occupant-owned condos, so how is this a solution that actually increases people's ability to own their homes?

Seems like its just a bait-and-switch in favor of landlords.

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Re:Making sense of what’s going on in the housing market by burlesona on Wednesday April 21, 2021 @11:36AM (#26891049)

It would be a lot easier and more marketable to take the more run down single family homes that have become too expensive for most people and do rebuilds that turn that lot into two homes. The financial model for a developer is easier too, you do the transaction and you’re done, as opposed to needing to be a landlord for a long time, or find just the right kind of investor to buy a 4-unit apartment (which is really rare).

There is an entire spectrum of housing types that are generally referred to as the “missing middle,” which are common in old cities and European cities but virtually non existent in post-ww2 America.

That’s what removing or relaxing single family zoning should allow.

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Re:Making sense of what’s going on in the housing market by pbronez on Wednesday April 21, 2021 @11:43AM (#26891142)

I saw some analysis a while back that said 2-3 story garden apartments are the most economically and environmentally sound level of density to shoot for. Would be neat to see those available as condos. You could double or triple density without pricing people out or creating urban environmental problems.

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Re:Making sense of what’s going on in the housing market by MuffinFlavored on Wednesday April 21, 2021 @01:03PM (#26892322)

> I saw some analysis a while back that said 2-3 story garden apartments

A big part of the "American dream" of homeownership (for me at least) is to not have any connected walls to anybody else (no condo, no apartment, no townhouse). I am going to guess a lot of people feel similar to me. 2-3 story garden apartments might be efficient, but I am willing to bet a lot of families selfishly want a single family home.

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Re:Making sense of what’s going on in the housing market by woah on Wednesday April 21, 2021 @01:37PM (#26892858)

Then they will need to get used to driving 3 hours a day

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Re:Making sense of what’s going on in the housing market by woah on Wednesday April 21, 2021 @01:54PM (#26893122)

Why would someone want to own a home?

1. Tap into an ever-rising, yet completely safe investment asset with massive leverage.

2. You can get more space owning than you can renting.

3. You have more certainty (can't be evicted, etc)

4. You enjoy home improvement as a weekend hobby.

1, 2 and 3 are ponzinomics.

1. This is obvious, and the main factor. It is only true because of the artificially constrained housing supply. Without this artificial scarcity, housing wouldn't increase in price any more than copper or pork bellies. Spending all of your net worth and going deep into debt to invest in a single pig farm would be considered very foolish and undiversified. Investing in a single housing property would be the same without the artificial market distortion. Existing homeowners have created this market distortion by pushing through ever-tighter zoning regulations at the local level. They are always ranting about conspiracies of "landlords" and "developers". Businesses that increase the housing supply are their natural enemy.

2. This is related to the factor above. You can't really get more space buying than renting, you just feel that it is safer to spend a large portion of your income on a mortgage since it's such a "safe investment".

3. Eviction wouldn't be an issue in a market with sufficient supply. Your rent wouldn't go up any faster than inflation, and might even go down. A landlord wouldn't want to evict you any more than a business would want lose you as a customer.

4. I guess I will have to concede that renting is a worse option for hobbyist carpenters.

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Re:Making sense of what’s going on in the housing market by ryandrake on Wednesday April 21, 2021 @03:00PM (#26894004)

I think you're really missing the mark on 4. This is not about enjoying home improvement as a hobby, it's about being allowed to improve your own living conditions.

I can do whatever I want with my property, within building codes, without having to ask a landlord. Want to knock down a wall, upgrade the stove to gas, build a shed in the backyard? You have the freedom. If my faucet is leaking, I don't have to beg someone to send a plumber.

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Re:Making sense of what’s going on in the housing market by thirtyseven on Wednesday April 21, 2021 @08:32PM (#26897213)

Try owning in SF, where it's impossible to get a plumber to come out for a small job, but a big enough landlord will have a guy that can come reasonably quickly.

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Re:Making sense of what’s going on in the housing market by tengbretson on Wednesday April 21, 2021 @04:12PM (#26894824)

Wouldn't any refutation of points 1, 2, and 3 as ponzinomics also apply to landlords?

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Re:Making sense of what’s going on in the housing market by woah on Wednesday April 21, 2021 @04:39PM (#26895140)

Housing should be a low margin, boring business. Smalltime landlords buying, renting, and flipping properties on leverage is another symptom of a distorted market.

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Re:Making sense of what’s going on in the housing market by mdorazio on Wednesday April 21, 2021 @11:49AM (#26891229)

More units available means lower rental prices (in general), which means renters should be able to save more money to purchase a home later. There's a big assumption baked in there that condos & houses don't get snapped up by existing landlords or rise in price faster than the savings rate of renters. But that's the thinking.

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Re:Making sense of what’s going on in the housing market by stonkdonk on Wednesday April 21, 2021 @02:26PM (#26893555)

Yeah I don't get it. People want to buy a home so that they have more space and privacy, including outdoor space. Sure, some condos have roof decks, balconies, or shared yards, but so do rentals.

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