Housing
Blog
How Eminent Domain Obliterated the Character of Cities
No city can possibly express its character – the many urban quirks and idiosyncrasies, as well as the strangely appealing grittiness and shining luxury that often coexist side-by-side – when government planners use the bulldozer to “improve” cities. Writing about the “wave of urban renewal that swept the world in ...
Blog
Previewing Gov. Newsom’s Political Roadshow State of the State
The Associated Press reports that “Newsom plans to fulfill his constitutional requirement by sending a letter to the State Legislature” instead of delivering the usual speech at the State Capitol. Part of me felt a little nostalgic by the news. I’ve had the chance to work on both sides of ...
Blog
Biden’s California Economy: Calling for national rent control
When running for president, Joe Biden often praised California’s governance and promised to nationalize many of the state’s policies. While Biden mostly has promoted the state’s infamous Assembly Bill 5, which was an attempt to largely outlaw independent contracting, the president also seeks to mimic the state in another way: ...
Blog
Progressives misread housing market with attack on investors
There seems to be mild panic regarding investors buying up housing. The Washington Post reported last year that, “investors bought a record share of homes in 2021,” almost “one in seven homes sold in America’s top metropolitan areas” as well as “the most in at least two decades.” Often the ...
Blog
Are Western cities ready for renewable skyscrapers?
Every so often a product comes along that presents itself as a “sustainable” innovation, yet has compelling appeal even if sustainability isn’t someone’s top priority. Of course, sustainability has become something of an overused buzzword, but it generally refers to a production process that doesn’t deplete natural resources or damage the environment. ...
Blog
Transfer Taxes and Eviction Bans Cripple Housing Growth
Transfer Taxes and Eviction Bans Cripple Housing Growth By Kenneth Schrupp January 20, 2023 While the rest of the nation experiences slowing rent growth and even rent declines, rents are projected to increase in California at the maximum legal level as the state’s enduring housing shortage more than offset the ...
Blog
A California Homeless Christmas Carol
My brother’s phone was dead — really dead. But his exacting and obsessive nature wouldn’t permit him move on. A few days earlier, he had lost his phone along with several credit cards. Technology being what it is, his wife’s phone was able to pinpoint exactly where it was — ...
Blog
CA’s Housing Crisis is So Bad That Families Are Now Taking in Their Child’s Teacher
“Do you have a room for rent?” asks the Rooms For Rent For MUSD Educators online form. “Please fill out this form and our MUSD educators who are seeking a room to rent will be notified. The rest is up to you.” “The continued loss of staff is what led ...
Blog
U.S. land ‘shortage’ is result of artificial growth limits
Some of the social-media responses to a Wall Street Journal article in September headlined, “The U.S. is Running Short of Land for Housing,” were heated. They proved – for anyone who has yet to realize it – that Tweeters and Facebook users might not always read posted articles particularly carefully ...
Featured
Watch Tour: Increasing Housing Density Can Build Thriving Neighborhoods
Watch as Steven Greenhut of PRI’s Free Cities Center and California YIMBY director of communications Matthew Lewis go on a tour of Berkeley to see first hand how denser, multi-family housing units and exist in harmony with single-family homes and create thriving neighborhoods.
How Eminent Domain Obliterated the Character of Cities
No city can possibly express its character – the many urban quirks and idiosyncrasies, as well as the strangely appealing grittiness and shining luxury that often coexist side-by-side – when government planners use the bulldozer to “improve” cities. Writing about the “wave of urban renewal that swept the world in ...
Previewing Gov. Newsom’s Political Roadshow State of the State
The Associated Press reports that “Newsom plans to fulfill his constitutional requirement by sending a letter to the State Legislature” instead of delivering the usual speech at the State Capitol. Part of me felt a little nostalgic by the news. I’ve had the chance to work on both sides of ...
Biden’s California Economy: Calling for national rent control
When running for president, Joe Biden often praised California’s governance and promised to nationalize many of the state’s policies. While Biden mostly has promoted the state’s infamous Assembly Bill 5, which was an attempt to largely outlaw independent contracting, the president also seeks to mimic the state in another way: ...
Progressives misread housing market with attack on investors
There seems to be mild panic regarding investors buying up housing. The Washington Post reported last year that, “investors bought a record share of homes in 2021,” almost “one in seven homes sold in America’s top metropolitan areas” as well as “the most in at least two decades.” Often the ...
Are Western cities ready for renewable skyscrapers?
Every so often a product comes along that presents itself as a “sustainable” innovation, yet has compelling appeal even if sustainability isn’t someone’s top priority. Of course, sustainability has become something of an overused buzzword, but it generally refers to a production process that doesn’t deplete natural resources or damage the environment. ...
Transfer Taxes and Eviction Bans Cripple Housing Growth
Transfer Taxes and Eviction Bans Cripple Housing Growth By Kenneth Schrupp January 20, 2023 While the rest of the nation experiences slowing rent growth and even rent declines, rents are projected to increase in California at the maximum legal level as the state’s enduring housing shortage more than offset the ...
A California Homeless Christmas Carol
My brother’s phone was dead — really dead. But his exacting and obsessive nature wouldn’t permit him move on. A few days earlier, he had lost his phone along with several credit cards. Technology being what it is, his wife’s phone was able to pinpoint exactly where it was — ...
CA’s Housing Crisis is So Bad That Families Are Now Taking in Their Child’s Teacher
“Do you have a room for rent?” asks the Rooms For Rent For MUSD Educators online form. “Please fill out this form and our MUSD educators who are seeking a room to rent will be notified. The rest is up to you.” “The continued loss of staff is what led ...
U.S. land ‘shortage’ is result of artificial growth limits
Some of the social-media responses to a Wall Street Journal article in September headlined, “The U.S. is Running Short of Land for Housing,” were heated. They proved – for anyone who has yet to realize it – that Tweeters and Facebook users might not always read posted articles particularly carefully ...
Watch Tour: Increasing Housing Density Can Build Thriving Neighborhoods
Watch as Steven Greenhut of PRI’s Free Cities Center and California YIMBY director of communications Matthew Lewis go on a tour of Berkeley to see first hand how denser, multi-family housing units and exist in harmony with single-family homes and create thriving neighborhoods.
