Comment by ctdonath | Hacker News Reader

Comment by ctdonath | Hacker News Reader

In January 2010, the unemployment rate in San Francisco was 10.1%. By April 2013, the rate had plummeted almost in half to 5.4%. In just the first four months of 2013, the San Francisco unemployment rate fell 22%.

Considering those rent prices (location location location!), if you don't have a good-paying job you're not going to stay there long. No unemployment entitlement is going to cover three years of renting a one-bedroom apartment renting at twice the mortgage on a four-bedroom one-acre-lot house conveniently outside Atlanta. Of course the unemployment rate plummeted: surely sky-high rent drove out anyone not able to keep or get a high-salary job.

Author focuses on availability of new units, and marvels at the low vacancy rate, without addressing the turnover of old units. It's a limited supply of high-desirability housing; either pay a high price or get out, there's a line of people waiting for openings and willing to pay premium prices to get in. Of course unemployment is low and prices high there.

Tenant laws hurt availability as many people keep units off the market because the law puts such strict limits on landlords that it can become abusive. There are many horror stories in SF about tenants from hell.

To your point, here is a recent NYT op-ed precisely on those tenant laws and how landlords are keeping units off the market: http://www.nytimes.com/2013/06/07/opinion/king-of-my-castle-...

Ugh...the "rent control" argument again.

First off, rent control doesn't apply to apartment building built after 1979, so, as noted below, its less relevant - especially with the new construction in SOMA.

Second, the anecdotal stories about landlords holding units off the market is just that - anecdotal stories. The owners of those buildings are Prop. 13'ed with a 30yr old assessment and are doing just fine. Opening a new unit means they can collect more rent at todays market rates. Its a silly story promoted by landlords that would like to make more money during the booms. Of course, its also those very rent control laws that protect landlords during the busts (2002, 2009, etc).

Sorry to say this, but rent will come down when companies in SF start running out of their free, investor money and have to turn a profit or sell themselves. More people will lose their jobs, won't be able to afford living in the city proper and people will move away. Thats the way it has been here for at least the last 20 years and probably longer.

By the way, also anecdotally since I can't find the reference, rents in the area have decreased by 5% on YoY basis.

However new buildings much provide a certain number of units as Below Market Rate housing.

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