A Room With A Nurse: The Finance Commission’s Bizarre Answer to $500K Units

Some things still surprise me. I guess I should be happy. Here’s the email I sent to members of the State House of Representative’s House Community Development, Housing & Tribal Affairs Committee. I testified in opposition to giving the Washington State Housing Finance Commission an increase on their debt limit without requiring more accountability. There is […]

Berkeley Study: Cost Per Unit Goes Up Because of Rules, Regulations

As I’ve pointed out already, non-profit housing producers get stomping mad when I point out the cost per unit of their product. They say, “It doesn’t work like that!” And whenever I point out the fact that rules, regulations, fees, and process overreach adds to the price of housing, I often get, “Oh, you just […]

Crosscut Festival Panel: Amazon Didn’t Raise Your Rent, the City Council Did

Two weeks ago I was honored to be a on a panel at the first Crosscut Festival, a wide ranging two day event with panels covering an array of national, regional, and local issues. My panel was called, Growth and Gentrification in a Tech Boomtown. I’m not sure exactly what the term “gentrification” means qualitatively […]