An argument that is made by one of the people quoted in the article is that the lack of housing could bring about economic collapse here in bay area and the Silicon Valley because there won't be enough housing for all the employees that the major employers (such as Google, Apple, Facebook, etc) need for fill their positions.
So, having put that out there, let's think this through; housing here in the valley is expensive (renting or buying), so if there is not enough housing, there is not enough employees for the employers here to hire, so the employers move operations elsewhere, which means less jobs here, so with less of a population that can afford the high cost of housing. . . . housing costs go down! Right?
Don't get me wrong, I don't want major employers to leave this valley, and remember, I am a Realtor. I get paid on commission so the more expensive the property, the more money I make! However I am a human being so I also believe in my heart that everyone deserves quality housing that is affordable, and maybe letting basic market forces play out will bring prices down instead of making local political leaders stick their fingers in the market and therefore making the housing situation worse.
Housing woes in the Bay Area have become so severe that two out of three residents now believe it's tougher to find a place to live, and at least half are ready to embrace higher-density housing in their neighborhoods to help tackle the problem, a poll released Thursday shows.
The poll by the Bay Area Council found that 67 percent of residents in the nine-county region believe finding a place to live is more difficult now than it was a year ago, and 50 percent support more housing, even if it means their city might become more packed with residents.
"The economy in the Bay Area could be hurt by the lack of affordable housing," said Tracey Grose, vice president of the Bay Area Council's Economic Institute. "It will be harder for employers in the Bay Area to recruit people. We are already seeing some evidence of that."
What's more, 76 percent of residents want policy makers and developers to direct their efforts toward the creation of certain types of housing. Specifically, respondents want the focus on housing for low- and middle-income people.
It's another sign that some Bay Area residents are willing to jettison their long-held anti-growth sentiments that are often dubbed "not in my backyard," or NIMBY.
"It's good that residents are willing to embrace higher density," said Christopher Thornberg, a founding partner with Beacon Economics. "That should have been happening a while ago."
Higher-density housing development was supported by 56 percent of Santa Clara County residents, 55 percent of Alameda County residents and 53 percent of San Francisco residents, according to the poll.
Asked about whether they would accept housing in their own neighborhoods, an affirmative response came from 61 percent of San Francisco residents, 59 percent in Alameda County and 58 percent in Santa Clara County.
"Water isn't the only thing that is in short supply in the Bay Area," said Jim Wunderman, president of the Bay Area Council. "Our region is growing, our economy is humming, but the housing shortage could be our Achilles heel."
Wunderman called for the housing problems to receive the same decisive action that's being undertaken statewide to combat the drought.
"We need a bold regional response to our historic housing crisis," Wunderman said.
San Francisco was also seen as the area that is most in need of affordable housing, according to the poll.
"This whole problem is going to get very bad very quickly," Thornberg said.
A growing number of Bay Area residents are expressing specific solutions to deal with the region's housing ailments.
About 65 percent of residents say they support reductions in fees and regulations for new housing. That's up from 61 percent in the same survey a year ago.
"There is a danger that the housing crisis will undercut our innovation ecosystem," Grose said.
Source: San Jose Mercury News, George Avalos
http://www.mercurynews.com/business/ci_28378843/housing-crisis-may-cause-nimby-attitudes-wane
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