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A comment on Austin's Surge of New Housing Construction Drove Down Rents. Parent comment

Re:Austin's Surge of New Housing Construction Drove Down Rents by kakacik on Thursday March 19, 2026 @04:39AM (#47436496)
... but your own housing isn't any form of basic human right, its a luxury all around the world and always has been. Now I completely understand folks who come out of uni and see the salaries (sans faangs and generally devs and few other lucky positions), the prices and the emotions of missing out come easily.

But it isn't a right, just because you would like it. Same as I don't have a right to a car at price I would like, just because I live, by my choice, in rural environment close to nature. I desperately need one though for work commute, shopping, taking kids to school etc so thats as non-optional as accommodation to existence of my family. I can either suck up car's actual prices, move whole family so I don't need it or do similar choices in life to tackle that.

But car ain't a right. Same as your own accommodation, of course not a modest small apartment but a house, ideally close to work, amenities, schools, and costing peanuts. Literally what everyone else wants. Or am I incorrect in your expectations? Because if yes, its easy to accept cheap remote small old properties, those aren't expensive for above-average earners at all, anywhere.

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Re:Austin's Surge of New Housing Construction Drove Down Rents by RobotToaster on Thursday March 19, 2026 @07:24AM (#47437587)
> its a luxury all around the world

China has a 96% homeownership rate.

Kazakhstan 98%

Laos, Romania, and Albania 95%

Slovakia 93%

Russia 92%

[ Parent | on HN ]
Re:Austin's Surge of New Housing Construction Drove Down Rents by bo0tzz on Thursday March 19, 2026 @05:24AM (#47436790)
The Universal Declaration of Human Rights, Article 25.1:

> Everyone has the right to a standard of living adequate for the health and well-being of himself and of his family, including food, clothing, housing and medical care and necessary social services, and the right to security in the event of unemployment, sickness, disability, widowhood, old age or other lack of livelihood in circumstances beyond his control.

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Re:Austin's Surge of New Housing Construction Drove Down Rents by bpt3 on Thursday March 19, 2026 @06:51AM (#47437336)
So if I declare a right to immortality, then no one dies?

It's almost like those words are the product of useless bureaucrats, rather than an actual right.

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Re:Austin's Surge of New Housing Construction Drove Down Rents by unethical_ban on Thursday March 19, 2026 @07:00AM (#47437390)
That is a disingenuous counterexample.
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Re:Austin's Surge of New Housing Construction Drove Down Rents by bpt3 on Thursday March 19, 2026 @10:37AM (#47440281)
It's really not.

What happens if everyone takes this declaration at face value and decides to be unemployed? Who pays for all the services that every person is entitled to?

[ Parent | on HN ]
Re:Austin's Surge of New Housing Construction Drove Down Rents by unethical_ban on Thursday March 19, 2026 @06:27AM (#47437146)
Positive rights and negative rights. Societies can and often do guarantee rights that place an obligation on society and others to fulfill. In the US, we have a right to emergency medical care regardless of ability to pay. We have a right to a fair trial and representation. In NYC, the city is obligated to provide shelter for the homeless. Some thing that should be more universal. Not all questions can be answered by me right now.
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