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That turns out to be surprisingly hard.

Offices and housing look similar from the outside, but are quite different on the inside, and both practical and regulatory problems are quite large.

I guess it's all up to the next best alternative.

If you've got offices that can't lease, the only thing left to do is sell it at a price a developer thinks they can turn a profit

I'm sure it's not simple. It would have to be backed by some public policy.

I bet Americans, especially those <30yrs old, will appreciate having a sub 600 USD a month apartment in a big city with no parking, shared kitchen, and share bathroom. Because the alternative is having a roommate and paying 1000 USD+.

My city has a few neat adaptive reuse projects right now converting office building to residential buildings. I really hope the concept works out.