The housing and rental ‘crisis’ has a simple solution. Governments need to become property developers again,…

The housing and rental ‘crisis’ has a simple solution. Governments need to become property developers again, building, selling and renting a huge number of properties at significantly below ‘market’ rates. It would also be a good earner, at a time revenue is scarce. /1 https://t.co/ZDpqHSzVuT

Some will say that will drive the value of existing homes down as well. But that’s what we want, that’s what all the rubbish about ‘more supply’ is supposed to be doing. Except it won’t, while that supply is in private hands. This was also the genius of ‘public’ anything. /2

Which we’ve forgotten. Political libertarians succeeded in portraying public goods and services as a ‘safety net’ option for ‘the vulnerable’. But actually the whole idea of ‘the public’ is as economic as you like. It’s just economies of scale. /3

The same principle used for Medicare. The same principle that should still be used against Covid, where the economies of scale of action against this horrible virus have all been privatised, to individuals. Grossly inefficient and ‘unproductive’. Basic economics. /end