[toodlebunions]

Seattle should immediately enact a 25% foreign buyer tax and an extra annual property tax assessment for vacant foreign owned homes.

Likewise, Midwest cities that are economically in the dumps could offer incentives to attract foreign buyers.

[ajmurmann]

Why not just tax for vacant homes, regardless if foreign or not?

[solatic]

Because that would ultimately discourage new construction. If you're an investor and you want to invest in a house to hopefully rent out (not keep empty just-in-case for yourself), then you have to factor in the risk of not being able to rent out the property. Having a tax if you fail to rent the house only increases the risk of failing to rent, and thus, makes investing in real estate more risky. Pro-development policies need investment to be less risky, not more risky.

[oakwhiz]

The investment risk does not increase very much if the price is decreased accordingly.

[tomcam]

On top of Seattle's already high property taxes? Should owners of vacant properties get a rebate because they aren't using the infrastructure they are paying for? Should I be able to tax you for not using your car at least 16 hours a day?

[hactually]

Seattle is a city built by it's people, they have created ideal conditions for home ownership by participating in building a peaceful, prosperous economy which respects individual rights. By having foreigners coming in and buying this 'society' up - beyond the first generation of land owners - they are penalised for having built their own country up, as they end up unable to afford to live in it, burning up valuable income into paying high rents and house prices. A tax is one of the best way to correct this imbalance, by charging the cost of enforcing individual rights to those who benefit from it.

[tomcam]

I have no idea what that meant.