08-30-2016, 11:17 PM
(08-30-2016, 02:07 PM)BuildingScout Wrote: I'm pretty sure demand and supply still works. Keep on approving high rises and I'm pretty sure we'll see the lower end of the market become cheaper.
In fact, last I heard some townhouse complexes in Lakewood were already offering some really great deals.
I agree with this. When "affordable housing" is conflated with subsidized, rent-geared-to-income units, a big piece is missing, namely the cost of all these programs and how much can be served with a given dollar of funding. If average market rents go down, subsidies can serve more people with the same budget. By far the biggest impact for the most number of people is if there is sufficient supply of a sufficient range of units - and it is cheap enough to build new ones - that there doesn't need to be a subsidy for rents to be affordable.
In cities that talk up the need for "affordable housing" and make it a negotiated condition for new developments with cross-subsidies, they make it more expensive to add new market supply. Focus on getting rid of unnecessary density limits, setbacks, and parking requirements, and you'll find that new units can be built to be a lot more affordable by default.