[notatoad]

that's still going to have the effect of lowering property values though.

it's a catch-22. "lowering the cost of housing" and "lowering property values" are the exact same thing. there's no actual political appetite to lower the cost of housing, because all the people in charge of making those decisions are property owners who don't want to see their investment lose value.

[geocon]

It may lower property values some, but in the long run even homeowners will be better-off as other, more burdensome taxes decrease. Sure, increasing land taxes may not be that popular, but pair it with abolishing income taxes? That's a different political proposition.

It's also why my first step is not to sell it as the implementation of a new tax; rather, it is an exemption to buildings. People don't like new taxes, but everyone loves exemptions!

Political problems are often difficult to solve but that by no means makes them impossible.