Costly Complexity
The needless complexity of affordable housing programs are hurting people they're supposed to help.
Housing Policy
Combat Homelessness by Ending Exclusionary Zoning
The Eighth Amendment provides little, if any, protection for the homeless. But courts can help them by striking down exclusionary zoning, which is the major cause of housing shortages that lead to homelessness.
California Is Trying To Drive Landlords Out of Business
Which is bad news for anyone hoping to rent a place to live.
Upcoming Event on "Solving the Nation's Housing Shortage" [update]
Economist Bryan Caplan, former National Association of Home Builders Director Jerry Howard, and I will speak at event sponsored by the Schar School of Policy and Government at George Mason University.
The Supreme Court Rules Impact Fees Can Violate Your Property Rights Too
Plus: Zoning reform in Minnesota stalls, a New York housing "deal" does little for housing supply, and Colorado ends occupancy limits.
A New York Housing Grand Bargain?
Plus: Problems for Saudi Arabia's The Line, Hawaii considers a short-term rental crackdown, and when affordable housing mandates get you less affordable housing.
New NBER Study Finds Covid Eviction Moratoria Increased Racial Discrimination
Moratoria caused landlords to be less willing to rent to black tenants.
The Catholic Case Against NIMBYism
Urban policy analyst Addison Del Mastro advances it in the Catholic journal America.
New Zealand's YIMBY Success—And How We Can Learn From it
New Zealand alleviated a severe housing shortage by liberalizing regulations that had previously blocked most new construction.
Pioneer Institute Hubwonk Podcast on Exclusionary Zoning and the Takings Clause
In interview with Joe Selvaggi of the Pioneer Institute, I explain the harm caused by exclusionary zoning, and why it violates the Takings Clause of the Fifth Amendment.
Birth of a YIMBY Folk Hero
Plus: The White House's rent controls, San Francisco's bad-to-worse turn on housing, and the latest unintended consequence of eviction moratoriums
Are 'Squatters' Rights' Out of Control?
Too many property owners are having trouble asserting their rights, but not everything is "squatter's rights."
California Won't Let Homeowners Insurance Companies Raise Rates, so They're Leaving the State Instead
Giving the state control over insurance rates turned pricing into a Byzantine regulatory process.
Squatters' Rights Laws Violate the Takings Clause
Where these laws allow squatters to occupy houses without the owner's consent, they qualify as takings of private property that require payment of compensation under the Fifth Amendment.
Zoning Versus the Good Samaritan. Again.
Plus: New York refreshes rent control, AOC and Bernie Sanders call for more, greener public housing, and California's "builder's remedy" wins big in court.
Central Planners Can't Fix Iraq—or Detroit
In Fragile Neighborhoods, author Seth Kaplan applies his Fixing Fragile States observations domestically.
American Nightmare
Plus: Squatters, Julian Assange, teen babysitters, Hong Kong migration, and more...
The Dark Side of Housing Bipartisanship
Plus: Texas Gov. Greg Abbott is fooled by TikTok housing falsehoods, Austin building boom cuts prices, and Sacramento does the socialist version of "homeless homesteading."
Cross-Ideological YIMBY Coalition Defies Increasing Polarization—So Far
The New York Times and the Atlantic report on how the movement to curb exclusionary zoning and build more housing has managed to cut across ideological lines.
Rent Free Q&A: Jared Polis
The Colorado governor talks about live housing reforms in the state legislature, the federal role in housing policy, and whether we should abolish zoning completely.
Matt Yglesias on the Takings Clause and Curbing Exclusionary Zoning
Prominent political commentator and zoning reform advocate comments on my work on this topic (with Joshua Braver).
Does This Laundry Look 'Historic' to You?
Plus: Arizona Gov. Katie Hobbs dithers over whether to veto bipartisan Starter Homes bill, Biden says "build, build, build," and Massachusetts sues anti-apartment suburb.
Historic Preservation Board Stops Family Removing KKK Supporter's Initial From Front of their House
Kristy Kay Money and Rolf Jacob Sraubhaar are now suing the city of San Marcos, Texas, saying they're being forced to keep a Klan-linked symbol on the front of their house is a physical taking.
State of the Union (on Stimulants)
Plus: Illegal immigrants at Whole Foods, AI predicting homelessness, Chinese espionage, and more...
A Brand New City in Northern California Will Show if the State Is Serious About Housing Solutions
The project might determine whether new generations will be able to take part in the American Dream.
Biden's Plan To Subsidize Homebuyers Won't Work
The president's laundry list of proposed tax credits would likely make the problem of high housing costs worse.
Here's Why Government Should Stop Throwing Money at Green Energy
In California, which has a slew of renewable energy regulations, the cost of electricity increased three times faster than in the rest of the U.S.—and the state still doesn't even get reliable energy.
Everything Is Getting Bigger in Texas
Plus: An interview with Montana Gov. Greg Gianforte, Minnesota lawmakers try to save Minneapolis zoning reform from excess environmental review, and the White House's new housing supply action plan.
The Economy Is Doing Way Better Than Many Believe
Despite the popular narrative, Millennials have dramatically more wealth than Gen Xers had at the same age, and incomes continue to grow with each new generation.
Fear, Loathing, and Zoning Reform in Minnesota
Plus: The man who would build an ADU, the zoning theory of child care, and tiny home red tape in Hawaii.
California Bill Banning Landlords' No-Dog Policies Is Anti-Choice and Anti-Urban
The market has created a lot of dog-free housing for a reason. A bill from Assemblymember Matt Haney would destroy it.
Expanding the Child Tax Credit Would Perpetuate Systemic Poverty
The policy is a true budget buster and is ineffective in the long term.
The Feds Give States Millions To Fix Homelessness, but States Are Sending It Back
Bureaucratic ineptitude leads to waste—and more people on the streets.
The "Migrant Crisis" is Caused by Flawed Work and Housing Policies, not Migrants
The difficulties some cities are experiencing arise because many migrants aren't allowed to work, and because of restrictions on construction of new housing.
After Supreme Court Denies Cases, Clarence Thomas Offers Hope to Rent Control Critics
Thomas agreed with the Court's decision to not take up two challenges to New York's rent stabilization law but said the constitutionality of rent control "is an important and pressing question."
Good Times, Bad Times: Eviction Edition
Plus: Voters in Massachusetts reject state-mandated upzonings, Florida localities rebel against a surprisingly effective YIMBY reform, and lawsuits target missing middle housing in Virginia.
New Article on "The Constitutional Case Against Exclusionary Zoning"
Coauthor Josh Braver and I argue exclusionary zoning violates the Takings Clause of the Fifth Amendment.
New York, New York
Plus: rent control behind financial problems at NYCB, public housing's corruption problem, and New York City's near-zero vacancy rate.
Delinquent Countries
Plus: RFK Jr.'s Super Bowl ad, New York's war on Airbnbs, Biden's TikToks, and more...
Do Americans Really Only Want Sprawl?
Plus: the House votes for more affordable housing subsidies, Portland tries to fix its "inclusionary housing" program, and is 2024 the year of the granny flat?
ACLU Sues Ronald McDonald House for Refusing To House People Convicted of Assault
The ACLU's lawsuit is filed on behalf of a New York man whose application to stay in a Ronald McDonald House was denied because of his 12-year-old felony assault conviction.
Argentina, Once One of the Richest Countries, Is Now One of the Poorest. Javier Milei Could Help Fix That.
The new libertarian president believes in free markets and the rule of law. When people have those things, prosperity happens.
The 2 Reasons California's YIMBY Reforms Are Failing
Plus: Ohio church sues the city trying to shut down its homeless services, another indigenous-owned megaproject approved in Vancouver, B.C., and a new report shows rapidly deteriorating housing affordability.
Princeton's Matthew Desmond Gets Everything Wrong About Poverty's Root Causes
Desmond's analysis never goes deeper than his facile assertion that "poverty persists because some wish and will it to."
Zoning Bans the Good Samaritan
Plus: Beverly Hills homeowners can't build new pools until their city allows new housing, a ballot initiative would legalize California's newest city, and NIMBYs sue to overturn zoning reform (again).
Zoning Board Orders Longtime Tenants' Homes Dismantled
Plus: the Supreme Court weighs housing fees and homelessness, YIMBYs bet on smaller, more focused reforms, and a new paper finds legalizing more housing does in fact bring costs down.
Homeless Encampments Cost These Cities Tens of Thousands of Dollars Per Tent
L.A., Portland, and other cities are spending millions to house homeless people in outdoor "safe sleeping" sites.
Rent Control for the Rich
Plus: Fort Collins tries passing zoning reform for the third time, Coastal California cracks down on Airbnbs, and state lawmakers try to unban rent control.
