Housing advocates are promoting two bills before the Texas legislature (HB1470 and SB265) in the name of freedom of choice. But these bills are not about freedom of choice. The two bills would make it illegal for landlords to refuse to accept housing choice vouchers or other forms of financial aid for housing. This, we…
For years, housing advocates have been clamoring for more affordable housing. After the Biden Administration announced a plan that would ostensibly increase the supply of affordable housing by eliminating single-family zoning, also known as exclusionary zoning, many advocates have denounced the plan. Exclusionary zoning isn’t the problem, they say. The problem is the gang that…
The pandemic has unleashed a torrent of out-of-context policies. The lock downs and the moratoriums on evictions are but two examples. Sadly, the victims of these policies have often embraced the underlying principles. A debate in Massachusetts illustrates this point. The Massachusetts state legislature is considering a bill that would strengthen the state’s eviction moratorium….
The Seattle City Council recently passed a law that provides legal representation for tenants facing eviction. According to the Seattle Times, advocates claim that the law “is a small investment that will help people stay in their homes and forestall the ruinous, and more expensive, consequences of homelessness.” Whether that claim is true or not…
For years, housing advocates have argued that landlords who refuse to accept housing vouchers are engaging in a form of racism because the majority of voucher users are black. Since I am a landlord who refuses to accept vouchers, in the eyes of many, I am a racist. In my twelve years as a landlord,…
A new “pro-choice” movement is being promoted by Leftists. As is often the case, the stated goals of this movement are a masquerade. While the policies advocated by the movement are presented as promoting freedom of choice, those policies are an attack on that freedom. As one example, housing advocates and their political supporters are…
It is rare that a book can objectively present the facts and then draw all of the wrong conclusions. Evicted: Poverty and Profit in the American City, which won a Pulitzer Prize in 2017, is one such book. Author Matthew Desmond follows eight low-income families and their landlords during the 2007-2008 financial crisis. He chronicles…
Ayn Rand often pointed out that businessmen have long been blamed for the disasters caused by government intervention in the economy. If one considers an issue out of context, such blame might seem plausible. But if we examine the full context, we will see that government frequently incentivizes bad behavior. The collapse of the housing…
“In a democracy,” Aristotle wrote, “the poor will have more power than the rich, because there are more of them, and the will of the majority is supreme.” In a democracy, the poor and their supporters can vote for politicians who promise to provide free food, education, health care, and housing. In a democracy, the…
An inevitable result of government’s growing intervention in economic matters is a conflict between various policy goals. An example of these conflicting goals is the goal of preserving historic buildings and the goal of providing affordable housing. A common feature of preservation ordinances is that repairs to an existing building must use “in-kind” materials. For…
An opinion piece in The Dallas Morning News correctly notes that SB12, which would force social media platforms like Facebook to publish content the company finds objectionable. Can you imagine a law that forced someone who plants a yard sign supporting a Republican candidate to also place one for the Democratic opponent beside it? That’s…
Imagine for a moment, that you want to open a restaurant in an impoverished neighborhood in your city. When you apply for the necessary permits at the Health Department, you are told that you will only be allowed to open your restaurant if you agree to sell a percentage of meals below your costs. You…