Hacker News Reader

Comment by q7xvh97o2pDhNrh | Hacker News Reader

Things like cars -- and especially houses -- are in a different category than some random piece of hardware or a bit of server space, though.

With limited exceptions, no one is making more land. So there's a hard limit on the supply of cars and houses, at least until we manage to cover Mars in shopping malls and billboards.

View on HN

>a hard limit on the supply of cars and houses

There is a regulatory limit, sure, but the literal parking lots - not garages, lots - visible from my downtown apartment begs to differ that we are anywhere close to a hard limit on the supply of houses.

The United States has a nearly infinite amount of unoccupied land. What's required is the political and social will to incentivize people to build.

And a relatively flat population. "Peak baby" was years ago. Most of the developed world is below replacement birth rate.

That's irrelevant, we are not going over there in Nigeria, India, Pakistan etc. they'll come over here in the developed world.

It's not even a matter of policy or politics or us vs. them...it's gonna happen, like gravity happens.

It makes sense to be prepared.

Except much of it is in places that are relatively hard to access, have no amenities, have exceptionally harsh weather, and may not have sufficient water to sustain a population. It's also stuck in the catch-22 of no jobs, no houses.

> The United States has a nearly infinite amount of unoccupied land. What's required is the political and social will to incentivize people to build.

The vast majority of that land is not where people want to live. Building houses there won't change that.

China tried it and failed in several cases, but succeeded in a couple of cities.

And when the typical voter who owns their own home votes in their best interest, they vote NIMBY. If you incentivize scarcity, scarcity is what you will get.

Change needs to come from above the system, not within.

Most home owners do not want their house to drop in value because there's more housing being built and available. I feel bad for the people who bought in at the top, but they're really pulling the ladder up behind them if their vested in their home value appreciating.

Reply on news.ycombinator.com