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Full-Text Articles in Urban Studies and Planning
Do Americans Support More Housing?, Michael Lewyn
Do Americans Support More Housing?, Michael Lewyn
Scholarly Works
An analysis of opinion poll data on housing issues. The article finds that Americans generally believe that their community needs more housing of all types, but are more closely divided about whether such housing should be in their own neighborhoods. The article further finds that members of minority groups, lower-income Americans, and younger Americans are more pro-housing than older, affluent whites.
The Case Against The Case For Zoning, Michael Lewyn
The Case Against The Case For Zoning, Michael Lewyn
Scholarly Works
Power points used in a presentation on a work in progress, responding to Christopher Serkin's "Case For Zoning" article at 96 Notre Dame L. Rev. 749.
Will Zoning Fix Itself?, Michael Lewyn
Will Zoning Fix Itself?, Michael Lewyn
Scholarly Works
Typically, zoning artificially limits housing supply, thus increasing housing costs. One possible defense of this system is that zoning can fix itself- that is, that when rents and housing costs become unusually high, politicians will deregulate and thus reduce housing costs. This article suggests that such a happy result is unlikely; instead, where housing costs spiral out of control, voters and politicians are likely to make regulation even more strict out of a fear of gentrification.
Do You Believe In Ghost Apartments?, Michael Lewyn
Do You Believe In Ghost Apartments?, Michael Lewyn
Scholarly Works
According to the popular press, expensive cities are being overrun by "ghost apartments"- condominiums owned by wealthy foreigners, but used as investments rather than being rented out to local residents. This article points out that such apartments are in fact a very small percentage of housing supply, even in some cities that are supposedly overran with such condos.More importantly, the existence of new “ghost apartments” does not justify exclusionary zoning policies. If a city popular with foreign investors discourages construction of new housing, investors are likely to purchase older housing units, outbidding local residents for those units. In this scenario, …