If you’re rich, there’s no problem finding a place to live in San Francisco. Lots of houses and condos are for sale; lots of apartments are for rent. In fact, the Chron just reported that most houses for sale in the city have been on the market for a month or more. Prices are, as they say in the business, softening; that means a place that might have been listed at $2 million could sell for $1.8 million. That means nothing to the vast majority of the people who work in this city; they can’t afford either price.
Buying a house has long been considered an essential part of the American dream, as homeownership can be a symbol of prosperity, stability and success. However, real estate mogul Grant Cardone argues that this notion no longer holds true.
In fact, for young Americans, Cardone believes that the idea of home ownership simply shouldn’t cross their minds right now.
These news items illustrate a larger story about the United States in this moment.
The Biden administration has quite deliberately overturned the supply-side economics that came into ascendancy in 1981 when President Ronald Reagan took office and that remained dominant until 2021, when Biden entered the White House.
There is much to question about a Housing Bond which will cost $48B in total debt service, yet
yield only $16B in proceeds for housing. At an average of $178K per unit, what will be built are
not Homes, but Corporate Rental Apartments, owned by wealthy investors who can benefit from
the 9% investment tax credit, and depreciation writeoff. And this Bond would continue a trend to institutional ownership of housing, not unlike the Mining and Mill towns of the 19th century.
What is clear is that many of the 150 state housing laws enacted since 2017, together with the Regional Housing Needs Allocation (RHNA) system administered by the Department of Housing and Community Development (HCD), will not produce a large supply of housing for Bay Area residents with annual incomes below approximately $100,000.
How do you lie in plain sight and make it seem real? You pretend you have a problem, put a LARGE number to it and then use the State government to control the process.
This is a scam for developers and unions to make money at the cost of taxpayers. The Bay Area is looking to put a $20 billion bond on the November ballot—that is $40 billion including interest. We are told that San Fran, which is losing population MUST build.
A weekly Zoom call to talk about housing legislation and strategies to preserve local control. Bring your questions and ideas. Informal networking, announcements, and updates. PLEASE NOTE: You have to register in advance the first time to get the new Zoom link. After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the meeting. The Zoom link will work for the rest of the year. REGISTER
A weekly Zoom call to talk about housing legislation and strategies to preserve local control. Bring your questions and ideas. Informal networking, announcements, and updates. PLEASE NOTE: You have to register in advance the first time to get the new Zoom link. After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the meeting. The Zoom link will work for the rest of the year. REGISTER
A weekly Zoom call to talk about housing legislation and strategies to preserve local control. Bring your questions and ideas. Informal networking, announcements, and updates. PLEASE NOTE: You have to register in advance the first time to get the new Zoom link. After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the meeting. The Zoom link will work for the rest of the year. REGISTER
The Great Housing Challenge: WHAT MATTERS TO CONSTITUENTS? A 4-part Town Hall Series on Zoom (August-November) Thursday nights, 5:00-6:30 pm Part 1: Safety Matters! State-imposed density increases fire risk which increases insurance costs. How one Sonoma community is fighting back. You can, too. Presenters: Amy Kalish, president, Citizen Marin, and (invited) Carolyn Scott, filmmaker “Small is Beautiful: The Quest to Save Valley of the Moon (Sonoma)” The California Dream is collapsing into a California Nightmare! Legislators have passed 150 laws since 2017, without increasing the supply of affordable housing. Evidence shows conditions are getting worse. What matters? Affordable housing, of course. And also safety, taxes, elections, and the constitution. SIGN UP FOR THE SERIES TODAY Register Sign up once and re-use your Zoom link throughout the series.
A weekly Zoom call to talk about housing legislation and strategies to preserve local control. Bring your questions and ideas. Informal networking, announcements, and updates. PLEASE NOTE: You have to register in advance the first time to get the new Zoom link. After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the meeting. The Zoom link will work for the rest of the year. REGISTER
