The best way to build affordable housing is to do it 30 years ago.
Dismissive or not, this common witticism in urban planning circles gets at a central truth of today’s housing crisis: the dearth of affordable housing in most economically dynamic American cities is not due to a temporary shortage or mispricing, but rather a protracted failure that stretches back decades.
In this whitepaper, Virtus Director of Research Zach Mallow takes on the housing crisis, examining its scope and major drivers before diving into what he deems the “binding constraint” keeping urban rental rates too high. What’s driving today’s housing crisis, and more importantly…is there anything to be done about it?
