Is there no solution to housing crisis?

[u/Comfortable-Wrap-493]

I feel like we are completely stuck.

I know the government can't just snap its fingers and force real estate prices to drop. Property is treated as a huge investment. It's not just the massive corporations and wealthy investors; even regular, lower-income people have their entire life savings tied up in the value of their homes. Crashing the market hurts them, too.

But if we don't find a solution, we are heading toward a future where only the rich will ever be able to afford buying land or a house.

Even renting is getting completely out of control. At the rate prices are increasing, soon only people with high-paying corporate jobs will be able to afford a basic apartment.

So what happens to everyone else? What about the working class, the people who actually sweat and break their backs to keep this country running? If the main workforce is priced out of both buying and renting, how does society even function? What about artistic jobs? What about creativity? Should all just join high paying collar jobs?

Does anyone see a realistic way out of this mess?

[u/sunshine_is_hot]

Corporate investors and landlords are such a tiny part of the problem (if they are even a part of the problem) they don’t bear mentioning. Corporate investors don’t make money if the property sits vacant, they want their investments to return so they don’t sit on vacant homes. Landlords are literally providing housing to make their money, they aren’t allowing places to sit vacant voluntarily either.

The issue is 99% zoning laws and NIMBYs. Let builders build and the problem is gone. It’s incredibly simple.

[u/sunshine_is_hot → u/[deleted]]

How do you think investors make money on vacant homes? Please, I’m curious to hear your reasoning.

[u/ImNotTheBossOfYou → u/sunshine_is_hot]

Line go up.

Renting is a major investment in time and resources. Not worth it when line go up.

https://nationalmortgageprofessional.com/news/investors-hold-most-empty-houses

[u/sunshine_is_hot → u/ImNotTheBossOfYou]

The link you posted does not support your claim. It says that the rate of home vacancies hasn’t changed over the years, that those homes are being brought to market and bought quickly, and says absolutely nothing about any of those investors profit margins or investment strategies.

[u/BobaLives01925 → u/ImNotTheBossOfYou]

Line doesn’t go up if they don’t make money.

[u/ImNotTheBossOfYou → u/BobaLives01925]

They sell the house later for twice what they paid for it without having to do any work in the meantime, silly.

Hoarding the house CAUSES the line to go up because of artificial scarcity.

[u/BobaLives01925 → u/ImNotTheBossOfYou]

That’s not how that works. Renting for a year doesn’t decrease value.

There is zero evidence for corporate owners hoarding and increasing prices. The problem is supply.

[u/ImNotTheBossOfYou → u/BobaLives01925]

I literally gave you evidence in that link you didn't read.

[u/BobaLives01925 → u/ImNotTheBossOfYou]

That’s article says it’s 3.6% of investor owned homes and the same rate it’s always been. Nobody could conclude that’s causing housing price increases unless they’re acting in bad faith

[u/hprather1 → u/ImNotTheBossOfYou]

The "evidence" you provided says very little about the location and absolutely nothing about the condition of those homes.

For all we know those homes are on the shithole side of some shithole town. Good luck convincing anyone to live in those.