Hi First name / there, When I soft-launched this newsletter last week, I wasn’t sure what kind of response I’d get. But you’re here! We are here together! I received some really thoughtful topic requests in response – everything from buying your first home to soaring home values and how to not act like a gentrifier. There’s a lot to dig into! I’d love to bring in experts and other people willing to share their stories eventually. I’m committed to compensating people for their time and knowledge, so that will likely need to wait until we reach a critical mass. My goal is 250 subscribers! Right now we are 30 strong. Feel free to share this with your people, if you’re so inclined. 🙌🏽 Today’s subject sums up why I decided to study community planning in the first place: why does it cost so much to put a roof over your head? The answer is complicated, but here are a few of the factors at play: - Supply and demand. In short, there’s not enough homes, especially in places where people want to live. According to Freddie Mac, the U.S. is about 3.8 million homes short of where it should be.
- Zoning. There are some housing policies that are managed at the federal and state level, but for the most part, decisions around what gets built, where it gets built, and how much of it gets built is managed at the local level. What’s the big deal? Well, for decades, sections of communities have been zoned *exclusively* for single-family homes. Meaning each unit requires a larger lot, a larger budget, and for would-be buyers, a larger paycheck. A journalist I admire, Jerusalem Demsas, sums this up nicely on Vox’s Today, Explained podcast.
- Wage stagnation amid rising costs. According to an analysis from Real Estate Witch (lol) based on U.S. Census data, “since 1965, average home values have skyrocketed from $171,942 to $374,900 — a 118% increase. Meanwhile, median household income crept up just 15%, from $59,920 to $69,178 in 2021-inflation-adjusted dollars.” If that’s not depressing, I don’t know what is. 😭
- The Market doesn’t care about people. Market fundamentalists have come out against interventions like rent control and inclusionary zoning (policies that give tax breaks to developers that include affordable units in a project) in favor of a natural market equilibrium. But the thing is, we’re a long way from any sort of equilibrium (see: supply and demand). And while we wait, people’s lives are impacted. The market doesn’t care whether your rent is 30% or 80% of your income – so long as you pay.
Over the next few weeks, we’ll come back to each of these challenges with greater depth (maybe not in this order, and maybe with other topics in between – my newsletter, my rules??). I wanted to start with the challenges we face in the housing market because we have to really understand what’s at play before we can comprehend what solutions seem feasible. If this week’s newsletter sparked further questions for ya, feel free to tap reply – I’m always stockpiling ideas for future editions. See you next week, PS – our first round of Design Office Hours is Wednesday, March 23 at 7 p.m. ET. It’s kind of like a mini design consultation, but in group form. You can ask me questions like “which color chair should I get??” and “is this rug too small??” It’s free for members, but space is limited. I think it’ll be a fun time! I went ahead and opened up registration, and you can view upcoming sessions in the Member Dashboard. |
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