[woodpanel]

Although I'm generally opposed to centralizing decision making, there seems to be proof that centralizing building restriction away from municipalities would help [1].

Restrictions on generating housing stock seems to be by far the biggest driver of income inequality and gentrification ("regulation accounts for 85% of the increase of house price dispersion from 1980 to 2009"). Not just gentrification within cities but the polarization of groups across a country.

[1] http://idea.uab.es/jmarket/2016-2017/ANDRII%20PARKHOMENKO/Pa...

[crdoconnor]

"In markets with low regulation the supply of housing will accommodate most of the rise in demand and the prices will not change much. Every period elections are held to local governments. Residents vote for candidates, each with a proposed level of regulation, via probabilistic voting. The selected level of regulation will be determined by two competing sets of interests: those of renters and those of owners. Renters prefer less regulation because this decreases rents and house prices, thereby lowering the downpayment they need to pay in case they decide to buy. Owners prefer more regulation as it increases the value of their houses."

This paper's decision to assume regulation is a scalar value, and renters as being "obviously" against rent control and rules about building affordable housing stock renders the conclusion of correlation pretty dubious, let alone causation.

Property developers are largely the ones fighting for cutting building regulations, not renters. Including regulations against building a set number of affordable housing units.

Income and wealth inequality was primarily triggered by union busting, untaxing the rich and offshoring, not how many parking spaces you were obligated to build in Los Angeles.

[woodpanel]

Of course I forgot, capitalism is to blame for all our present day evils. I doubt you've read the whole thing before finding the snippet useful for bashing it.

Housing Stock regulation is indeed hard to compare, but compared to other regulations it is rather well suited.