Institutional buyers who treat housing as an investment product become disconnected from the impacts of higher rents, displacement, and housing instability.
Writing in Strong Towns, Edward Erfurt argues that the financialization of housing — “a system that increasingly treats homes like stocks” — is a significant component of the current housing crisis.
According to Erfurt, “The U.S. housing market is entangled with the financial system. We have been trained to see rising rents and home values as a sign of economic strength, but when those increases are the result of artificial manipulation rather than organic demand, that “growth” is an illusion.”
Investors who buy housing as a financial product don’t consider the ramifications of higher rents, displacement, and the destabilization of communities. “They are investing in a financial product, not in shelter. Their focus is on whether their fund continues to grow.”
Erfurt notes that our local planning systems perpetuate this behavior with laws and regulations that often favor large-scale developers who can afford to navigate intricate permitting processes. For Erfurt, the solution is a shift in how we treat housing. “It's not a speculative financial instrument but an essential piece of infrastructure for a healthy community. That means supporting policies and reforms that empower small-scale development, remove artificial barriers, and restore competition to local housing markets.”
FULL STORY: The Rent Is Too Damn Artificial
Missouri Law Would Ban Protections for Housing Voucher Users
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Study: Maui’s Plan to Convert Vacation Rentals to Long-Term Housing Could Cause Nearly $1 Billion Economic Loss
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San Antonio Remains Affordable as City Grows
The city’s active efforts to keep housing costs down through housing reforms and coordinated efforts among city agencies and developers have kept it one of the most affordable in the nation despite its rapid population growth.
Trump Administration Could Effectively End Housing Voucher Program
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Planetizen Federal Action Tracker
A weekly monitor of how Trump’s orders and actions are impacting planners and planning in America.
Canada vs. Kamala: Whose Liberal Housing Platform Comes Out on Top?
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Washington State’s Parking Reform Law Could Unlock ‘Countless’ Acres for New Housing
A law that limits how much parking cities can require for residential amd commercial developments could lead to a construction boom.
Wildlife Rebounds After the Eaton Fire
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LA to Replace Inglewood Light Rail Project With Bus Shuttles
LA Metro says the change is in response to community engagement and that the new design will be ready before the 2028 Olympic Games.
Urban Design for Planners 1: Software Tools
This six-course series explores essential urban design concepts using open source software and equips planners with the tools they need to participate fully in the urban design process.
Planning for Universal Design
Learn the tools for implementing Universal Design in planning regulations.
Central Transportation Planning Staff/Boston Region MPO
Heyer Gruel & Associates PA
Institute for Housing and Urban Development Studies (IHS)
City of Grandview
Harvard GSD Executive Education
Regional Transportation Commission of Southern Nevada
Toledo-Lucas County Plan Commissions