We can have one without the other
As academics, advocates, and pundits scramble to explain the rising burden of housing costs in American cities, much has been written about the specter of vacant housing. A symptom of wealthy speculators, vacant units indicate that many investors are happy to park their wealth in real estate and profit… Read More »Everybody Works But The Vacant Lot: How Speculators Profit From Our Thriving Cities
As housing costs continue their inexorable climb upwards in cities across the US, concern is mounting about the role played by corporate investors. Referred to as the ‘financialization’ of housing, real estate is being hoovered-up by massive investment funds with names like BlackRock and Blackstone. While attention is often paid… Read More »Citadels of Privilege: How LLCs Funnel Land Rents Into the Pockets of Wealthy Investors
New Zealand is suffering many of the same ills that afflict American cities. Tenants facing ever-rising rents, young people and ethnic minorities being priced out of homeownership, widening inequality driven by soaring land values, sprawling cities and congested streets. A long and bitter debate that… Read More »LVT on the Ballot in New Zealand
