[stego-tech]

They are one of many pragmatic solutions, though I’d strongly argue cities skip right to forced-divestiture schemes of vacant units for owners and landlords alike. We have a homelessness crisis, and if you own a property that’s vacant nine months out of the year in a major metro then that should be forcibly sold off, incur steep tax penalties, or be rented out at fixed rates and long leases if you want to preserve ownership.

[kube-system]

There is not some epidemic of vacant rentals driving up prices. Vacancies right now are right around the long-term norm, 7%. Home vacancies are actually near all-time lows: 1%.

[stego-tech]

** right off. If I’m in a downtown metro near any newer development at night - rentals or owners - they’re largely dark and empty with little to no signs of life.

Your statistics are damned lies to those of us observing lived life in our cities. Nobody is hand-checking every single unit out there for accurate statistics on housing utilization, it’s all self-reporting.

[kube-system]

1. your anecdote isn't data

2. usually things are quiet at night because people go home and/or bed

3. the only places i've been to where the nightlife is in a neighborhood called "downtown" are small towns

4. my anecdotal data contradicts yours

[epistasis]

People lie about high vacancies in new buildings almost compulsively.

There was a big splash of PR for a report on high vacancies in new LA apartment buildings a few years ago, and it had to be retracted within a week because the methodology was pretty much nonexistent, like counting lights in windows at night and not realizing that people visit friends, go to concerts, go out to eat, stay at their girlfriend's place, or any one of many other things that keeps lights off in occupied apartments.

I see it with every single new multistory building in my small downtown. People complaining about a building being fully empty shortly after it has been built, when in reality it's filling up faster than planned and there are only 20% of the units left.

Yes, there are lies, but in my experience the lies are only for too many vacancies.

[kube-system]

That is quite a wild methodology. Just go try to rent an apartment in the off season and you'll see how few vacancies there are.