Re:The Scourge of Rent Control
by alpineidyll3 on Thursday September 08, 2022 @04:36PM
(#32771740)
It's funny, in areas I deal with daily these second order effects feel obvious and make me scream daily. I had to read your good comment 2x though. Perhaps I'm under slept, or perhaps this is a sadly durable failure of the human mind.
i'd happily get rid of rent control right after we get rid of prop 13, all the nimby-supported regulations, building codes, and zoning laws, and a whole raft of homeowner and real estate investor subsidies. rent control doesn't dampen new construction, because rent control laws typically exempt newer buildings (like 25-30 years) to allow investors to recoup their investments first.
so you're right, rent control doesn't exist in a vacuum, but exists in response to all the above advantage given to homeowners/investors. let's get rid of those advantages first, then we can unwind rent control.
Rent control means less development of rentals subject to its control, so local government becomes a developer (i.e., housing authorities).
Rent control and public housing push market-rate housing out of neighborhoods, leading to suburban growth and sprawl, and away from infill densification -- at least for middle- and upper-class buyers/renters.
Once that dynamic is in place, your infrastructure costs rise immensely, which leads to higher taxes, more reliance on state and federal grants, or both.