AI transcript
0:00:04 Are you between jobs, self-employed or losing group health coverage?
0:00:08 Get protection from costs not covered by your government health plan with personal health
0:00:12 insurance from BC’s health experts, Pacific Blue Cross.
0:00:17 Design your flexible plan with comprehensive coverage for dental, massage, mental wellness,
0:00:20 physio, vision, prescription drugs, and more.
0:00:22 All starting from only $3 a day.
0:00:26 Buy now for coverage that begins on the first of next month.
0:00:29 Get covered at PAC.bluecross.ca.
0:00:34 There’s over 500,000 small businesses in BC and no two are alike.
0:00:35 I’m a carpenter.
0:00:37 I’m a graphic designer.
0:00:39 I sell dog socks online.
0:00:43 That’s why BCAA created one-size-doesn’t-fit-all insurance.
0:00:45 It’s customizable based on your unique needs.
0:00:49 So whether you manage rental properties or paint pet portraits,
0:00:53 you can protect your small business with BC’s most trusted insurance brand.
0:00:59 Visit bcaa.com/smallbusiness and use promo code radio to receive $50 off.
0:01:00 Conditions apply.
0:01:02 On this week’s episode of “Networth and Chill,”
0:01:06 I’m chatting with Internet sensation and everyone’s favorite filly influencer, Bran Flakes.
0:01:10 He’s a social media maverick and content creator turning viral moments into cold, hard cash.
0:01:14 Listen wherever you get your podcasts or watch on the Yorich BFF YouTube channel.
0:01:19 I’m Skye Galloway, and this is No Mercy, No Malice.
0:01:24 U.S. Democrats and moderates need less indignance and more ideas.
0:01:28 Project 2028, “Housing,” as read by George Hahn.
0:01:47 Democrats need to be the party of ideas, not indignation.
0:01:53 Our Project 2028 series will address critical issues facing American society
0:01:56 through a no mercy, no malice lens.
0:02:00 We begin with housing.
0:02:05 The U.S. doesn’t have a housing crisis, but an affordability crisis.
0:02:12 Roughly one-third of Americans rent, and nearly half are cost-burdened, i.e. they spend 30%
0:02:16 or more of their income on housing.
0:02:25 Since 2019, rents have increased 1.5 times faster than income in most U.S. metro areas.
0:02:31 In purely economic terms, increased housing costs reduce labor mobility and productivity
0:02:35 as workers can afford to live in high-growth areas.
0:02:41 When human capital can’t be invested in the regions offering the greatest returns, it
0:02:43 dampens growth.
0:02:49 One research project estimates that removing housing constraints, i.e. lowering costs,
0:02:58 to increase the liquidity of human capital would increase GDP by $1.4 trillion.
0:03:04 In sum, there may be an economic as well as a social justification for government investments
0:03:06 in housing.
0:03:11 Elevated housing costs also take a toll on health, as families who struggle to afford
0:03:16 housing often delay medical care, eat less healthy food, and have higher levels of anxiety
0:03:18 and depression.
0:03:28 But the most catastrophic consequence of unaffordable housing is that 770,000 Americans are homeless.
0:03:34 According to one study, communities where the median rent is more than 32% of the median
0:03:40 household income are likely to see sharply higher rates of homelessness.
0:03:46 But no matter where they live, homeless people suffer intense physical and mental harm, put
0:03:51 a disproportionate burden on public services where they live, and reduce the quality of
0:03:54 life for all citizens.
0:04:03 The common denominator for struggling renters and the homeless is an identity but money.
0:04:08 Increasing support for Section 8 housing and rent control may provide short-term relief,
0:04:14 but in the long term, these programs become entrenched and suppress development.
0:04:21 The quickest way to help poor people afford housing is simple – pay them more.
0:04:28 As I’ve written before, I believe minimum wage should be $25 per hour.
0:04:33 There are approximately 32,000 homeless veterans in the U.S.
0:04:39 While vets account for only 5% of the total homeless population, housing them is a good
0:04:44 place to start, as they’re politically popular and have access to benefits.
0:04:51 A federal no-homeless vets pilot program could be a platform for testing solutions.
0:04:56 It could also provide what’s missing in American politics right now – renewed confidence
0:05:01 that the government can take on big challenges.
0:05:07 Honing a home marks one’s progression into adulthood, starting a family, and building
0:05:08 wealth.
0:05:13 But for many Americans, the American dream has become a hallucination.
0:05:16 This is especially true for young people.
0:05:26 Between 1984 and 2024, the age of the typical first-time homebuyer jumped from 29 to 35.
0:05:33 Since 1963, home prices have increased three times after adjusting for inflation, while
0:05:38 the median household income increased about one and a half times.
0:05:44 Nationally, the average home price-to-income ratio is 4.7.
0:05:52 It’s significantly higher in California at 8.4, Washington at 6.3, Massachusetts at
0:06:01 6.3, New York at 5.7, and Florida at 5.7.
0:06:07 Housing experts say we need to build somewhere between 1.7 million and 7.3 million additional
0:06:09 housing units.
0:06:15 In the same way Ernest Hemingway described the process of going bankrupt, we got here
0:06:16 gradually.
0:06:21 Then suddenly, as the pace of home building has yet to fully rebound to the rate before
0:06:29 the Great Recession, increased costs for labor, building materials, and regulatory compliance
0:06:32 have all contributed to the problem.
0:06:39 The cost of building multifamily housing in California, for example, spiked by 25 percent
0:06:42 between 2010 and 2020.
0:06:49 Nationwide residential construction costs rose 19 percent over the same period.
0:06:53 Construction costs have stabilized since the pandemic.
0:07:00 Labor costs grew 3.8 percent over the past year, while the cost of materials was flat.
0:07:06 Mass deportations and tariffs, however, will likely increase the cost of both labor and
0:07:09 materials.
0:07:14 Democrats don’t have the power over tariffs and immigration, but they can champion cost-effective
0:07:17 building.
0:07:24 Manufactured homes, which are built in factories and finished on site, are 35 percent to 73
0:07:28 percent cheaper than homes built entirely on site.
0:07:33 In Los Angeles, many homeowners can afford to rebuild after the fires, as quotes for
0:07:38 new construction can be two times or more what insurance will cover.
0:07:46 A partnership between a nonprofit and manufactured home startup aims to donate 100 pre-built
0:07:51 homes that cost around $260,000 each.
0:07:58 To rebuild LA quickly, local leaders should hyperscale this kind of building.
0:08:03 When I interviewed housing economist Jenny Schuetz on my podcast, she told me housing
0:08:08 policy is relatively simple, but the politics are hard.
0:08:16 Case in point, around 75 percent of residential land in the U.S. is zoned exclusively for
0:08:23 single-family homes, the most costly and least dense type of housing.
0:08:29 Re-zoning for multi-family housing and taller buildings would make it easier to build.
0:08:35 At the federal level, the Bipartisan YIMBY Act encourages block grant recipients to
0:08:39 track and remove barriers to housing construction.
0:08:45 HUD grants along the lines of pathways to removing obstacles to housing, which Congress
0:08:53 authorized $85 million for in 2023, have helped localities purchase land for affordable housing,
0:08:59 streamline the building application process, and add local staff to fast-track affordable
0:09:01 housing proposals.
0:09:04 We should double down.
0:09:09 Likewise, we should pass the Bipartisan Housing Supply and Affordability Act, which would
0:09:19 allocate $1.5 billion in technical assistance to overhaul local zoning rules.
0:09:23 Local governments and neighborhoods, however, hold most of the power here.
0:09:29 Reform is costly and time-consuming, as new rules must contend with a confusing legislative
0:09:31 labyrinth.
0:09:36 The effects of an overlawyer process are most apparent in blue states.
0:09:42 A significant number of Californians left for Texas in search of jobs and affordable
0:09:47 housing, the chocolate and peanut butter of economic growth.
0:09:53 To win national elections, Democrats need to demonstrate that they can govern.
0:09:55 The winning move?
0:10:02 Go hard at zoning reform, cut red tape, and encourage development.
0:10:07 Such a pivot could make for strange bedfellows, zoning reform means taking on environmentalists
0:10:11 and wealthy homeowners.
0:10:17 The standard property tax model imposes taxes on land and structures.
0:10:22 This discourages building, since new construction will be taxed.
0:10:28 We should reverse the incentives and tax only undeveloped land, encouraging development
0:10:33 while cutting taxes on existing homes.
0:10:37 The idea has been proposed in Detroit and New York City to reduce the number of vacant
0:10:40 lots in those cities.
0:10:45 In Pennsylvania, several cities have used a similar split-rate tax that taxes structures
0:10:49 at a lower rate than land.
0:10:55 One study found that split-rate tax models can increase high-density housing units between
0:10:58 2% and 10%.
0:11:04 Embracing the strategy could rebrand Democrats from tax and spend liberals to tax-cutting
0:11:06 builders.
0:11:12 This week, the California legislature released a report examining the state’s failure to
0:11:14 build enough affordable housing.
0:11:16 The author’s conclusion?
0:11:23 The planning process is slow, crippled by red tape and vulnerable to frivolous lawsuits,
0:11:27 making it too damn hard to build in the Golden State.
0:11:35 Exhibit A. In 2024, the state’s Supreme Court resolved a three-year battle over a 1200-unit
0:11:38 Berkeley housing project.
0:11:42 Neighborhood groups argued that the noise predicted to come from college student housing
0:11:46 amounted to a pollutant under the law.
0:11:51 The neighborhood groups lost, but the case illustrates the larger problem.
0:11:57 By the way, UC Berkeley has been there longer than any resident and the scarcity model weaponized
0:12:02 by administration’s departments and existing homeowners is morally bankrupt.
0:12:05 But that’s another post.
0:12:12 NIMBY homeowners have fashioned a state law, the California Environmental Quality Act,
0:12:16 into an anti-growth cudgel.
0:12:23 A California Legislative Analysts Office study found that CEQA litigation delayed construction
0:12:26 by two and a half years.
0:12:34 Only 20% of CEQA lawsuits target greenfields, i.e. converting open space to housing, while
0:12:44 85% of CEQA lawsuits were filed by groups with no track record of environmental litigation.
0:12:50 A California state senator has introduced legislation to fast-track CEQA cases.
0:12:57 Lawmakers in states and localities with similar laws should follow suit.
0:13:04 Rents in Minneapolis increased by only 1% between 2017 and 2022, largely because developers
0:13:09 increased the housing stock by 12% during the same period.
0:13:16 Meanwhile, rents in the rest of Minnesota, which only boosted housing stock by 4%, increased
0:13:19 by 14%.
0:13:21 The Unlock?
0:13:28 Minneapolis reformed zoning laws to encourage taller multi-family housing projects and eliminated
0:13:33 parking minimums that can cost $50,000 per space.
0:13:40 It’s a similar story in Austin, where city officials waged a decade-long political fight
0:13:44 to tackle housing affordability through rezoning.
0:13:50 Americans’ new rules allow for single-family homes to be built on smaller lots, apartments
0:13:56 to be built closer to single-family homes, and denser development along a planned light
0:13:59 rail line.
0:14:04 Nimby homeowners tend to be loud and politically connected, giving the impression that their
0:14:08 views represent the broader community.
0:14:10 That is not the case.
0:14:16 YouGov polling suggests that Americans may be more receptive to local development than
0:14:19 previously thought.
0:14:28 Support for building more single-family homes polls at 90% nationally, 81% locally.
0:14:33 For senior housing, national support polls at 88%.
0:14:37 Local support is 84%.
0:14:44 Nearly 76% of Americans want more apartments built, while 65% support building more apartments
0:14:46 locally.
0:14:51 Low-income housing and homeless shelters are the least favored housing types, but even
0:14:55 there local support polls at 2 to 1.
0:15:02 If you’re a politician, you’ve been given a green light to ignore nimbies.
0:15:08 Despite the conventional wisdom, people lose money in real estate.
0:15:13 Homes are illiquid capital-intensive assets that come with phantom costs – insurance
0:15:19 premiums, maintenance bills, and property taxes, all of which are expected to rise due
0:15:21 to climate change.
0:15:28 Owning also limits diversification, as homes are close to workplaces, meaning a local economic
0:15:34 downturn or a natural disaster could wipe out your equity at the same time you lose
0:15:36 a job.
0:15:45 Historically, the S&P averages a 10% annual return, outpacing housing at 4% to 8%.
0:15:52 Moreover, real estate brokers typically charge around a 6% commission – 60 times the transaction
0:15:58 cost you’d pay for a low-fee ETF that tracks the S&P.
0:16:03 The advantage of home ownership is forced savings, as people don’t want to risk the
0:16:06 hassle and shame of eviction.
0:16:12 Another advantage – owning can stabilize monthly housing costs relative to rents.
0:16:19 I like real estate, as no other asset class allows you to lever up 5 to 1 with a low downpayment
0:16:22 and a deductible interest rate.
0:16:29 But the idea that home ownership is the best or only way to build wealth is a lie fomented
0:16:34 by the National Realtors Association that needs to die.
0:16:40 This lie leads to dubious financial advice for the people who buy homes that don’t outperform
0:16:46 the market, and it makes those who aren’t able to buy feel like failures.
0:16:52 But the most toxic byproduct of this lie is that it encourages incumbents to inflate the
0:16:57 value of their assets by making housing scarce.
0:17:04 Americans want to build wealth, and Democrats should speak in aspirational terms.
0:17:09 But if housing is the primary or only vehicle for wealth accumulation, we shouldn’t be
0:17:15 surprised that our political fault lines are rich against poor, rural against urban, and
0:17:18 old against young.
0:17:24 If economic security is the nutrition of a capitalist society, then maybe we need to
0:17:34 stop thinking of housing as an investment, but a consumable, like food, energy, education.
0:17:39 The construction of millions of low-cost units for young people, coupled with tax-advantaged
0:17:45 incentives to invest in the market, would result in a better path to wealth.
0:17:51 In addition, we need to remove housing from the growing list of sources of anxiety for
0:17:53 young people.
0:17:58 It’s housing, not an investment strategy or the arbiter of whether you’re worthy
0:18:03 enough to mate, start a family, or earn status.
0:18:09 Economic security and deep and meaningful relationships are the American dream, not
0:18:11 a mortgage payment.
0:18:22 The call sign for the next administration should morph from drill-baby-drill to build-baby-build.
0:18:23 Life is so rich.
0:18:33 [Music]
0:18:41 [BLANK_AUDIO]
0:00:08 Get protection from costs not covered by your government health plan with personal health
0:00:12 insurance from BC’s health experts, Pacific Blue Cross.
0:00:17 Design your flexible plan with comprehensive coverage for dental, massage, mental wellness,
0:00:20 physio, vision, prescription drugs, and more.
0:00:22 All starting from only $3 a day.
0:00:26 Buy now for coverage that begins on the first of next month.
0:00:29 Get covered at PAC.bluecross.ca.
0:00:34 There’s over 500,000 small businesses in BC and no two are alike.
0:00:35 I’m a carpenter.
0:00:37 I’m a graphic designer.
0:00:39 I sell dog socks online.
0:00:43 That’s why BCAA created one-size-doesn’t-fit-all insurance.
0:00:45 It’s customizable based on your unique needs.
0:00:49 So whether you manage rental properties or paint pet portraits,
0:00:53 you can protect your small business with BC’s most trusted insurance brand.
0:00:59 Visit bcaa.com/smallbusiness and use promo code radio to receive $50 off.
0:01:00 Conditions apply.
0:01:02 On this week’s episode of “Networth and Chill,”
0:01:06 I’m chatting with Internet sensation and everyone’s favorite filly influencer, Bran Flakes.
0:01:10 He’s a social media maverick and content creator turning viral moments into cold, hard cash.
0:01:14 Listen wherever you get your podcasts or watch on the Yorich BFF YouTube channel.
0:01:19 I’m Skye Galloway, and this is No Mercy, No Malice.
0:01:24 U.S. Democrats and moderates need less indignance and more ideas.
0:01:28 Project 2028, “Housing,” as read by George Hahn.
0:01:47 Democrats need to be the party of ideas, not indignation.
0:01:53 Our Project 2028 series will address critical issues facing American society
0:01:56 through a no mercy, no malice lens.
0:02:00 We begin with housing.
0:02:05 The U.S. doesn’t have a housing crisis, but an affordability crisis.
0:02:12 Roughly one-third of Americans rent, and nearly half are cost-burdened, i.e. they spend 30%
0:02:16 or more of their income on housing.
0:02:25 Since 2019, rents have increased 1.5 times faster than income in most U.S. metro areas.
0:02:31 In purely economic terms, increased housing costs reduce labor mobility and productivity
0:02:35 as workers can afford to live in high-growth areas.
0:02:41 When human capital can’t be invested in the regions offering the greatest returns, it
0:02:43 dampens growth.
0:02:49 One research project estimates that removing housing constraints, i.e. lowering costs,
0:02:58 to increase the liquidity of human capital would increase GDP by $1.4 trillion.
0:03:04 In sum, there may be an economic as well as a social justification for government investments
0:03:06 in housing.
0:03:11 Elevated housing costs also take a toll on health, as families who struggle to afford
0:03:16 housing often delay medical care, eat less healthy food, and have higher levels of anxiety
0:03:18 and depression.
0:03:28 But the most catastrophic consequence of unaffordable housing is that 770,000 Americans are homeless.
0:03:34 According to one study, communities where the median rent is more than 32% of the median
0:03:40 household income are likely to see sharply higher rates of homelessness.
0:03:46 But no matter where they live, homeless people suffer intense physical and mental harm, put
0:03:51 a disproportionate burden on public services where they live, and reduce the quality of
0:03:54 life for all citizens.
0:04:03 The common denominator for struggling renters and the homeless is an identity but money.
0:04:08 Increasing support for Section 8 housing and rent control may provide short-term relief,
0:04:14 but in the long term, these programs become entrenched and suppress development.
0:04:21 The quickest way to help poor people afford housing is simple – pay them more.
0:04:28 As I’ve written before, I believe minimum wage should be $25 per hour.
0:04:33 There are approximately 32,000 homeless veterans in the U.S.
0:04:39 While vets account for only 5% of the total homeless population, housing them is a good
0:04:44 place to start, as they’re politically popular and have access to benefits.
0:04:51 A federal no-homeless vets pilot program could be a platform for testing solutions.
0:04:56 It could also provide what’s missing in American politics right now – renewed confidence
0:05:01 that the government can take on big challenges.
0:05:07 Honing a home marks one’s progression into adulthood, starting a family, and building
0:05:08 wealth.
0:05:13 But for many Americans, the American dream has become a hallucination.
0:05:16 This is especially true for young people.
0:05:26 Between 1984 and 2024, the age of the typical first-time homebuyer jumped from 29 to 35.
0:05:33 Since 1963, home prices have increased three times after adjusting for inflation, while
0:05:38 the median household income increased about one and a half times.
0:05:44 Nationally, the average home price-to-income ratio is 4.7.
0:05:52 It’s significantly higher in California at 8.4, Washington at 6.3, Massachusetts at
0:06:01 6.3, New York at 5.7, and Florida at 5.7.
0:06:07 Housing experts say we need to build somewhere between 1.7 million and 7.3 million additional
0:06:09 housing units.
0:06:15 In the same way Ernest Hemingway described the process of going bankrupt, we got here
0:06:16 gradually.
0:06:21 Then suddenly, as the pace of home building has yet to fully rebound to the rate before
0:06:29 the Great Recession, increased costs for labor, building materials, and regulatory compliance
0:06:32 have all contributed to the problem.
0:06:39 The cost of building multifamily housing in California, for example, spiked by 25 percent
0:06:42 between 2010 and 2020.
0:06:49 Nationwide residential construction costs rose 19 percent over the same period.
0:06:53 Construction costs have stabilized since the pandemic.
0:07:00 Labor costs grew 3.8 percent over the past year, while the cost of materials was flat.
0:07:06 Mass deportations and tariffs, however, will likely increase the cost of both labor and
0:07:09 materials.
0:07:14 Democrats don’t have the power over tariffs and immigration, but they can champion cost-effective
0:07:17 building.
0:07:24 Manufactured homes, which are built in factories and finished on site, are 35 percent to 73
0:07:28 percent cheaper than homes built entirely on site.
0:07:33 In Los Angeles, many homeowners can afford to rebuild after the fires, as quotes for
0:07:38 new construction can be two times or more what insurance will cover.
0:07:46 A partnership between a nonprofit and manufactured home startup aims to donate 100 pre-built
0:07:51 homes that cost around $260,000 each.
0:07:58 To rebuild LA quickly, local leaders should hyperscale this kind of building.
0:08:03 When I interviewed housing economist Jenny Schuetz on my podcast, she told me housing
0:08:08 policy is relatively simple, but the politics are hard.
0:08:16 Case in point, around 75 percent of residential land in the U.S. is zoned exclusively for
0:08:23 single-family homes, the most costly and least dense type of housing.
0:08:29 Re-zoning for multi-family housing and taller buildings would make it easier to build.
0:08:35 At the federal level, the Bipartisan YIMBY Act encourages block grant recipients to
0:08:39 track and remove barriers to housing construction.
0:08:45 HUD grants along the lines of pathways to removing obstacles to housing, which Congress
0:08:53 authorized $85 million for in 2023, have helped localities purchase land for affordable housing,
0:08:59 streamline the building application process, and add local staff to fast-track affordable
0:09:01 housing proposals.
0:09:04 We should double down.
0:09:09 Likewise, we should pass the Bipartisan Housing Supply and Affordability Act, which would
0:09:19 allocate $1.5 billion in technical assistance to overhaul local zoning rules.
0:09:23 Local governments and neighborhoods, however, hold most of the power here.
0:09:29 Reform is costly and time-consuming, as new rules must contend with a confusing legislative
0:09:31 labyrinth.
0:09:36 The effects of an overlawyer process are most apparent in blue states.
0:09:42 A significant number of Californians left for Texas in search of jobs and affordable
0:09:47 housing, the chocolate and peanut butter of economic growth.
0:09:53 To win national elections, Democrats need to demonstrate that they can govern.
0:09:55 The winning move?
0:10:02 Go hard at zoning reform, cut red tape, and encourage development.
0:10:07 Such a pivot could make for strange bedfellows, zoning reform means taking on environmentalists
0:10:11 and wealthy homeowners.
0:10:17 The standard property tax model imposes taxes on land and structures.
0:10:22 This discourages building, since new construction will be taxed.
0:10:28 We should reverse the incentives and tax only undeveloped land, encouraging development
0:10:33 while cutting taxes on existing homes.
0:10:37 The idea has been proposed in Detroit and New York City to reduce the number of vacant
0:10:40 lots in those cities.
0:10:45 In Pennsylvania, several cities have used a similar split-rate tax that taxes structures
0:10:49 at a lower rate than land.
0:10:55 One study found that split-rate tax models can increase high-density housing units between
0:10:58 2% and 10%.
0:11:04 Embracing the strategy could rebrand Democrats from tax and spend liberals to tax-cutting
0:11:06 builders.
0:11:12 This week, the California legislature released a report examining the state’s failure to
0:11:14 build enough affordable housing.
0:11:16 The author’s conclusion?
0:11:23 The planning process is slow, crippled by red tape and vulnerable to frivolous lawsuits,
0:11:27 making it too damn hard to build in the Golden State.
0:11:35 Exhibit A. In 2024, the state’s Supreme Court resolved a three-year battle over a 1200-unit
0:11:38 Berkeley housing project.
0:11:42 Neighborhood groups argued that the noise predicted to come from college student housing
0:11:46 amounted to a pollutant under the law.
0:11:51 The neighborhood groups lost, but the case illustrates the larger problem.
0:11:57 By the way, UC Berkeley has been there longer than any resident and the scarcity model weaponized
0:12:02 by administration’s departments and existing homeowners is morally bankrupt.
0:12:05 But that’s another post.
0:12:12 NIMBY homeowners have fashioned a state law, the California Environmental Quality Act,
0:12:16 into an anti-growth cudgel.
0:12:23 A California Legislative Analysts Office study found that CEQA litigation delayed construction
0:12:26 by two and a half years.
0:12:34 Only 20% of CEQA lawsuits target greenfields, i.e. converting open space to housing, while
0:12:44 85% of CEQA lawsuits were filed by groups with no track record of environmental litigation.
0:12:50 A California state senator has introduced legislation to fast-track CEQA cases.
0:12:57 Lawmakers in states and localities with similar laws should follow suit.
0:13:04 Rents in Minneapolis increased by only 1% between 2017 and 2022, largely because developers
0:13:09 increased the housing stock by 12% during the same period.
0:13:16 Meanwhile, rents in the rest of Minnesota, which only boosted housing stock by 4%, increased
0:13:19 by 14%.
0:13:21 The Unlock?
0:13:28 Minneapolis reformed zoning laws to encourage taller multi-family housing projects and eliminated
0:13:33 parking minimums that can cost $50,000 per space.
0:13:40 It’s a similar story in Austin, where city officials waged a decade-long political fight
0:13:44 to tackle housing affordability through rezoning.
0:13:50 Americans’ new rules allow for single-family homes to be built on smaller lots, apartments
0:13:56 to be built closer to single-family homes, and denser development along a planned light
0:13:59 rail line.
0:14:04 Nimby homeowners tend to be loud and politically connected, giving the impression that their
0:14:08 views represent the broader community.
0:14:10 That is not the case.
0:14:16 YouGov polling suggests that Americans may be more receptive to local development than
0:14:19 previously thought.
0:14:28 Support for building more single-family homes polls at 90% nationally, 81% locally.
0:14:33 For senior housing, national support polls at 88%.
0:14:37 Local support is 84%.
0:14:44 Nearly 76% of Americans want more apartments built, while 65% support building more apartments
0:14:46 locally.
0:14:51 Low-income housing and homeless shelters are the least favored housing types, but even
0:14:55 there local support polls at 2 to 1.
0:15:02 If you’re a politician, you’ve been given a green light to ignore nimbies.
0:15:08 Despite the conventional wisdom, people lose money in real estate.
0:15:13 Homes are illiquid capital-intensive assets that come with phantom costs – insurance
0:15:19 premiums, maintenance bills, and property taxes, all of which are expected to rise due
0:15:21 to climate change.
0:15:28 Owning also limits diversification, as homes are close to workplaces, meaning a local economic
0:15:34 downturn or a natural disaster could wipe out your equity at the same time you lose
0:15:36 a job.
0:15:45 Historically, the S&P averages a 10% annual return, outpacing housing at 4% to 8%.
0:15:52 Moreover, real estate brokers typically charge around a 6% commission – 60 times the transaction
0:15:58 cost you’d pay for a low-fee ETF that tracks the S&P.
0:16:03 The advantage of home ownership is forced savings, as people don’t want to risk the
0:16:06 hassle and shame of eviction.
0:16:12 Another advantage – owning can stabilize monthly housing costs relative to rents.
0:16:19 I like real estate, as no other asset class allows you to lever up 5 to 1 with a low downpayment
0:16:22 and a deductible interest rate.
0:16:29 But the idea that home ownership is the best or only way to build wealth is a lie fomented
0:16:34 by the National Realtors Association that needs to die.
0:16:40 This lie leads to dubious financial advice for the people who buy homes that don’t outperform
0:16:46 the market, and it makes those who aren’t able to buy feel like failures.
0:16:52 But the most toxic byproduct of this lie is that it encourages incumbents to inflate the
0:16:57 value of their assets by making housing scarce.
0:17:04 Americans want to build wealth, and Democrats should speak in aspirational terms.
0:17:09 But if housing is the primary or only vehicle for wealth accumulation, we shouldn’t be
0:17:15 surprised that our political fault lines are rich against poor, rural against urban, and
0:17:18 old against young.
0:17:24 If economic security is the nutrition of a capitalist society, then maybe we need to
0:17:34 stop thinking of housing as an investment, but a consumable, like food, energy, education.
0:17:39 The construction of millions of low-cost units for young people, coupled with tax-advantaged
0:17:45 incentives to invest in the market, would result in a better path to wealth.
0:17:51 In addition, we need to remove housing from the growing list of sources of anxiety for
0:17:53 young people.
0:17:58 It’s housing, not an investment strategy or the arbiter of whether you’re worthy
0:18:03 enough to mate, start a family, or earn status.
0:18:09 Economic security and deep and meaningful relationships are the American dream, not
0:18:11 a mortgage payment.
0:18:22 The call sign for the next administration should morph from drill-baby-drill to build-baby-build.
0:18:23 Life is so rich.
0:18:33 [Music]
0:18:41 [BLANK_AUDIO]
As read by George Hahn.
Project 2028: Housing
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