We’re also seeing a rapid increase in commercial vacancies with WFH. But there are big challenges and costs to turning commercial properties into residential.
I’ve heard a lot about the problems. Surely there’s some good ideas for a solution out there?
What do you suppose causes high housing prices then?
Speculation and, more broadly, commodification.
Those are definitely factors as well but I think they are only enabled by the lack of supply. People can’t bid up the price of something if more can be easily produced in response.
There is no lack of supply. The supply of empty homes far exceeds the number of unhoused people.
A literal truth that ignores the logistical, geographic, and political difficulties of getting those people into those houses.
Historically speaking vacancies are extremely low currently, particularly in areas where housing prices are high and homelessness is common. These problems appeared as the ratio of people to housing increased and it’s not a coincidence.
The easiest solution will be to build more housing where it is most needed, though that takes time and other strategies will be necessary in the interim.
The difficulty is capitalism. Houses should not be commodities to be bought and sold.
Corporations buying them up to rent out is my speculation, between that, people attempting to flip them, and just regular home buyers, it’s making for a very low amount available which causes prices to be high, and new houses aren’t being built fast enough to keep up.
I live in an older neighborhood and at least 50% of every house that has gone on the market since we bought in 2019 has been sold to flippers and listed for $200k more 3-6 months later. I can’t believe how much they have driven up prices in the area.
To a degree, construction costs. We tried to build a house a couple of years ago. Got pretty far down the road, having reserved a plot, picked out a floorplan, paint, etc. When it came time to appraise, it appraised $60k under cost and the plans fell through - we’d have had to give up everything that was motivating us to build in the first place and pay twice what out current home costs for essentially a side-grade.
We’ll try again once the kids move out and we’re looking for a “forever home” without stairs and stuff that we can grow old in.