undefined | Better HN

0 pointsHammershaft1y ago0 comments

AirBnB rentals are not making it criminal to build supply, local zoning regulations that benefit incumbents at the expense of everyone else are what make it criminal to build supply.

It's a defect at the intersection of capitalism, property ownership, and democracy.

0 comments

4 comments · 1 top-level

g-b-r1y ago· 3 in thread

What do you think would happen if you filled a cozy touristic town with skyscrapers?

HammershaftOP1y ago

Who is building skyscrapers in a cozy tourist town? Do you really think zoning laws are the only thing standing between tiny towns and a bustling metropolis?

If there is strong demand for housing, you might see bungalows turn into town homes or townhomes turn into mixed use 3 story flats... Which tend to be much more economically productive for the local gov anyways because the cost of infrastructure & services per person drops.

g-b-r1y ago

If there were no rules some people would build as much as they could, so long as it stayed profitable

Some zoning rules are worse, some better, but without rules at all many places would get ruined quickly

LunaSea1y ago

Maybe not skyscrapers but very high tourism rental apartment buildings.

You can look at the Belgian coast for an example of this enshitification of coastal real estate.

j / k navigate · click thread line to collapse