Quote:
Originally Posted by flamesfever
Unfortunately I'm starting to learn you are right. However, when things are obviously done for personal profit, without care for the people involved, and false arguments are employed, I get concerned.
For example, many people say that the communities, they wish to change, are old and in poor shape, and that is absolutely untrue. Most homes built in the 1950s have been significantly upgraded to increase their value. Also the building that went on in the 1950s was, in many ways, superior to what has happened in the last 20 or so years. I was talking to a group of renovators, working on an older home up the street recently, and they told me that when they go into the attic of a house built in the 1950s, it is perfectly dry. In fact they said they found an old raizor blade that didn't have a drop of rust on it in the house they were working on. Whereas, they said in all the houses built from the 1990s on, the attics were all wet.
Another untruth is that the upzoning is done to give the poor people a chance to live in the nicer areas. When you can purchase a 1950s bungalow for $700,000. with a large lot, and then turn around and subdivide the lot, and build two infills for $800,00. each, you certainly aren't helping the poor.
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I agree with most of what you say. Especially taking one of those older 1200 sq. ft. houses and throwing it in the dump for a new 2500 sq. ft. single family home. Total waste, and now there is this new massive thing to build, heat and cool.
On the point regarding subdividing a lot and putting up 2 $800k places, I actually think this does help. Once developers burn through the demand of wealthier people looking for a more dense option (duplex instead of single family), the profits will start to dry up, and they will turn their attention to other underserved sectors.
As long as we have a lineup of upper middle class people looking for large duplexes, we're going to have to resort to contrived planning measures to build lower income stuff. Historically, those policies are always flawed in some form and don't end up working all that well. At this point, I think just getting more houses built faster is our most realistic path to seeing more of the affordable options pop up. They do exist in these neighbourhoods, just much lower volume right now because more money is there to be made on the big stuff in the current tight market.