We’re #32!: Seattle Data Doesn’t Warrant Rent Panic
I pointed out yesterday in my post about the Seattle Way that here in Seattle we haven’t been very smart about housing policy. That’s mostly because we rely on data that has no relationship to the housing market place or the way people actually build, finance, and buy housing products. If we look at data […]
O’Brien, Sawant Grandstand While Apartment Owner Fixes Problems
It’s a pretty simple story. A new owner buys a building that has run down from an owner who used the deferred maintenance as a subsidy for lower rents. Often the buildings are so run down they don’t meet City standards for heal the and safety. So the new owner has to make repairs and […]
Economics, Not “Social Justice,” is How We Solve Housing Problems
I was sitting a meeting about affordable housing last week hosted by Seattle City Council candidate Lorena Gonzalez. The emphasis was “social justice” and housing. Gonzalez, after listening to a discussion about housing prices and City policy, concluded that the best way to understand and deal with rising housing prices was to look at the […]
