One star for Krugman

Reader comment on: Krugman Makes a Good Point

Submitted by Andrew Terhune (United States), Apr 5, 2016 09:51

Yes, he gets a star for acknowledging the pernicious effects of regulation on housing availability. But that's all. The kind of solution he and Mayor de Blasio prefer is no better. It grants more density, but only by imposing onerous requirements for "affordable" housing.

The obvious yet overlooked problem with this is, how does one fairly allocate a product, below market-rate housing, for which demand will always exceed supply? You can't. Some lucky residents will win the housing lottery and get to live a swanky addresses for a fraction of what they would pay if they paid market rents.

Those who really get shafted are the many who make just enough not to qualify for the housing lottery, but not enough to afford to pay market rates to live at these addresses. The effect is buildings occupied by the wealthy and the lucky poor, and few if any middle-class tenants.

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