A major cause of the increased cost of living in NYC, SF, Boston, SV is the "rent seeking" activity increasing cost of renting or purchasing a house through restricting housing density through zoning and through overuse of historic buildings designations.
Harvard Economist Edward Glaeser speaks of this. In these cities, the cost of housing is far higher than the cost of construction because politics is used to make wealthy landowners even wealthier at the cost to others.
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A major cause of the increased cost of living in NYC, SF, Boston, SV is the "rent seeking" activity increasing cost of renting or purchasing a house through restricting housing density through zoning and through overuse of historic buildings designations.
Harvard Economist Edward Glaeser speaks of this. In these cities, the cost of housing is far higher than the cost of construction because politics is used to make wealthy landowners even wealthier at the cost to others.
Rent seeking is a sign of market inefficiency.