It’s said that moving homes is one of the most stressful life experiences we can endure. This episode may shed some light on why. EconTalk host Russ Roberts welcomes Jenny Schuetz, whose work focuses on land use and housing. The conversation is based in part on a recent article Schuetz wrote on what we can learn about housing from Little Women. What are these lessons Schuetz thinks we’ve missed in the 21st century? Why aren’t property rights enough to determine how land is used, and what sort(s) of housing options it might support? Why can’t we address the problem of homelessness in urban areas more effectively? And how have we turned some of our most beloved urban centers into nothing more than “museums” for the wealthy to enjoy?
Let’s hear what you think about these challenging issues. Use the conversation starters below to get you going.
1- What are some of the regulatory barriers to new home building Schuetz describes, and which do you think are the most pernicious? Why?
2- What lesson(s) are we to learn from the Great Recession about housing, according to Schuetz? Why has the number of real estate development firms gone down since the Great Recession?
3- How does the bootlegger and Baptist theory apply to housing development? Schuetz says, “…the problem is: The only people who get to vote, who get to put direct political pressure on elected officials, are the people who already live there. The people who would benefit from the new housing live in another jurisdiction altogether.” What does she mean, and what are some of the consequences of this?
4- How are zoning and land use regulations contributing to increasing rates of homelessness? Why do both Roberts and Schuetz insist it’s NOT appropriate to blame “greedy landlords” for people not being able to afford housing? To what extent do you agree?
5- Roberts asks Schuetz why zoning and land use regulations have become so much more restrictive over the past several decades. How does she respond? Similarly, he asks what she thinks ought be done. How does Schuetz advocate the use of “fiscal tools” to change people’s behavior? To what extent does she convince you?
READER COMMENTS
Tony Warren
Apr 5 2020 at 9:41pm
Houston and Dallas, two very large cities with really inexpensive housing are excellent examples of why and how city planning departments cause land shortages and high prices that benefit only developers and politician. They don’t have planning departments, when one buys a property, one knows that with rare exception that a building will be put on it.
Amy Willis
Apr 6 2020 at 7:28am
Good point, Tony, and both cities were discussed in the episode, too. (More so, Houston).
Jeff Enes
May 18 2020 at 3:41pm
My firm has worked on several entitlement projects in California that have taken 5 or more years for approval. The long duration and expense (often several million dollars at risk) of the land use approval process often discourages capital from making the investment. In general, the developer/investor community is pushed to deliver higher priced new housing because that is the only product segment that can be profitably delivered after accounting for the entitlement costs and very high development impact fees paid to the government. It is an interesting and unfortunate situation: the ability to deliver more attainable priced new housing in California is often prevented by the land use restrictions and fees imposed by the community/government who are seeking more lower-priced housing.
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