[s73ver_]

So what's the solution for addressing this problem, AND not having local families from being muscled out by tech employees? Because whatever is proposed, if it means that local families have to leave because the rent was increased astronomically underneath them, then it's a non-starter.

[stickfigure]

The solution is for local families to be muscled out.

Hi, let me introduce myself. I am SF's housing crisis. So are many of my friends. We're those "local families" who have been living in SF for 15+ years in rent-controlled apartments. We're still here because the rent is cheap. If our rent went up even moderately, we'd probably move to the suburbs; by the time you hit your 40s, you get tired of stepping over panhandlers and human feces.

If you really want to get angry, let me tell you about the multiple times I've moved away for extended periods and kept the apartment unoccupied as a pied-a-terre. Rent control makes it affordable!

There are a lot of us, enough to occupy a significant chunk of the housing stock. Because we've taken this stock off the market, the available float is smaller than it would otherwise be, so everyone's bidding up what's left.

Would average rents go up without rent control? Certainly. But it would force a lot of us "local families" to make long-overdue decisions, freeing up housing, and driving down the average "new rent".

[s73ver_]

"The solution is for local families to be muscled out."

No, it absolutely is not.

[linkregister]

What in particular about incumbent renters justifies making policies that benefit that group above all others? Is there something inherently less worthy about families seeking to return to a city after having left it? About a daughter seeking to move out of her parents house?

[thinkloop]

It's not about favoring one group over another, it's about (trying to) reduce volatility, favoring less change over more change when it comes to housing because forced relocation can be tough. Also things like reducing class segregation, etc. Not saying it works.

[s73ver_]

What in particular about the tech workers justifies making policies so that they can muscle out people who are already there?

[hindsightbias]

Pave Golden Gate Park.