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Comment by failwhaleshark | Hacker News Reader

This would be very expensive since commercial office buildings and residential units are vastly different in terms of construction, building codes, utilities, and layouts. Sure, you could chop them up into artist studios and lofts, but they would be extremely expensive.

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Oh absolutely. The collapse in the market for office real-estate would have to get particularly bad for the owners of those properties go for that option. The owners of these properties are in the business to make money. If nobody wants their property for offices anymore, they will have to find some new use for their property that they can profit from. The condos/studios/lofts/whatever resulting from a conversion would indeed need to command high rates to make such a conversion worth it. Like I said, the housing created by such an option would be an expensive luxury probably only affordable by the upper-middle and upper classes.

However, given the (IMO probable) positive effects for less-than-rich, I would not protest such an outcome.

I can’t speak to the conversion costs, but let’s pretend there’s a creative solution (modular construction?).

Converting office space to mass market housing could be a huge long term win. Cities like NYC and SF already have a huge shortage of overall non-luxury units which has caused rents in previously less expensive further out neighborhoods to spike. These neighborhoods aren’t super exciting to live in now so they’ll naturally be more affordable to start. Hopefully over time by mixing housing and residential in these central business districts they’ll become more vibrant w/ an economic engine that runs on nights/weekends too.

If commercial vacancies really do spike it may be better for cities to incentivize these conversions rather then let their midtown’s stagnate.

I think if somebody gets creative about it some of that cost can be reduced. Likely the big drivers in cost are going to be running utilities to support different uses (kitchens, showers, etc.) Maybe a new type of living space can exist where kitchens are shared? Or where there is a gym with private spa-like shower/changing space on a lower floor. I'm not saying these are good ideas (I certainly wouldn't live in that sort of place now), but maybe somebody can figure it out.

Even if you have to tear down and rebuild, rezoning and conversion here seems much more politically achievable than up-zoning existing residential areas. On the one hand, you have to fight current residents who would be displaced, as well as their neighbors who don't like change. On the other hand, you have the ability to make the land valuable still by repurposing it for residential instead of having an empty wasted tower.

I guess it's an opportunity cost calculation of convert vs. rebuild. Some affluent areas where the inventory of fancy lofts is low would likely support it, while lower-income areas it would be best to demo and build a giant tower of micro apartments.

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