In an opinion piece on Politico, housing advocates Cea Weaver and Paul Williams argue that “democrats would be fools to slash Biden’s housing plan.” At a proposed cost of $327 billion, that housing plan, along with other entitlements proposed by Biden, are part of “long-overdue expansions of the welfare state.” Not surprisingly, the authors do…
Sometimes, a guy just wants to have fun. This past week, President Biden announced that after a two-year sabbatical because of the pandemic, Burning Man will officially return in 2022. The nine-day event will be held on the White House lawn beginning August 28. When asked how 70,000 people were going to fit onto the…
Like a swarm of lemmings, Seattle keeps moving closer to the edge of the cliff. Since the beginning of the pandemic, city council has enacted a series of destructive ordinances under the guise of protecting tenants. The latest insanity includes: Tenants must be given six months’ notice of rent increases Landlords must pay a tenant…
In an open letter to the Montclair Property Owners Association (MPOA) in February, I wrote: MPOA isn’t opposed to rent control as a matter of moral principle. The association just doesn’t like the particular version passed by the town council. This approach will fail in the long-term because it cedes the moral principle involved—the right…
Sometimes, a guy just wants to have fun. Last week, the Seattle City Council voted to eliminate single-family zoning. However, unlike other cities that are actually abolishing such exclusionary laws, the council boldly voted to change the name of “single-family zoning” to “neighborhood residential zoning.” Council members admitted that the name change does nothing to…
Politicians on both sides of the aisle are infamous for saying one thing and doing something contrary to their words. For a voter who values free markets and property rights, it is particularly disconcerting when politicians express support for such principles and then abandon those ideas when it is politically expedient. Texas Attorney General Ken…
Officials in Clark County, Nevada, are upset with the state’s association for realtors. In its August newsletter, the association told members that Nevada has no rent control laws and “landlords can raise the rent as much as they like, as long as the rent increase does not occur during the current lease.” A county commissioner…
Europe is experiencing record high energy prices, and with winter fast approaching, many predict the situation will get worse. Like most of the developed world, European countries have been rushing to adopt “renewable” energy sources like wind. However, when the wind doesn’t blow, there is no power generated. Alex Epstein has been making this point…
Swedish economist Assar Lindbeck once asserted, “In many cases rent control appears to be the most efficient technique presently known to destroy a city—except for bombing.” Economists disagree on many things, but almost universally agree that rent control is a bad idea. But this hasn’t stopped politicians and housing advocates from calling for more rent…
Libertarians believe that individual liberty is compatible with virtually any moral code. However, politics is the application of morality into a social context. To separate the two is to place liberty on a foundation that cannot support freedom. In a piece titled, “Native Americans Had a Lot More Private Property Than You Think,” Daniella Bassi,…
An opinion piece in the San Bernardino Sun essentially claims that zoning is an application of property rights: When someone “owns” property, they own a “bundle” of ancillary rights. Bundle of rights is a term for a group of legal privileges granted to the owner at the time of purchase. The bundle contains ownership. Right…