I think a lot more needs to be made of political parties like Sinn Fein, Labour and the Social Democrats who are constantly crying crocodile tears about the housing crisis yet whose TDs and Councillors are usually leading opposition to new housing projects. It's galling to listen to Holly Cairns every week in the Dáil whinging about home young people not being able to own a home while her party (according to the Irish Independent Soc Dem TDs/councillors have objected to approx 3 thousand new houses/apartments). https://m.independent.ie/irish-news/holly-cairns-backs-social-democrats-tds-over-string-of-objections-to-new-builds/a1939944952.html.
Unfortunately lot of people see the likes of SF and the Soc Dems as the answer to the housing crisis and can't or won't see the link between objections and scarcity of units to buy.
SF could really help solve the housing crisis. If they increased income taxes and bring their scapegoating of private enterprise and big business into government, they will stifle investment and chase a lot of the well paid jobs out of the country! That’ll definitely help bring house prices down.
Former SD leader Roisin Shorthall objected to housing in her area by saying it would “completely distort the area” whatever that means as it’s an urban area anyway.Politicians always play to their base. Governments only drive up prices with their mad policies ie help to buy, shared equity schemes. Rent controls and excessive regulations. Objections by TDs.
All this does is increase prices.
This affordable housing we are supposed to get is all a myth. Inflation will win out once the giveaway budget is done in Autumn.
Best thing government can do is leave it to the free market and stay out of it.
I agree the constant meddling with the market has been counterproductive. The idea that we have a “free market” for housing and this has failed to deliver is an utter nonsense. We have a very heavily regulated dysfunctional market.
It’s not as if builders and developers are free to develop C BER rated homes using basic materials that would have more than sufficed 15 years ago.
What also bugs me is arguments like we used to build big housing estates when we were a poor country so why can’t they do that now? You mean it was easily to build when unemployment was really high so labour was really cheap, and we were building freezing cold poured concrete houses in fields with barely a functioning road leading to them and nothing else around but horses for kids to play with?
Yes ECB massive money printing and low interest rates free for all is now catching up with them. Now you have ECB trying well for now take money out of system but governments wanting to keep their voters happy with more welfare. Tax cuts and spending promises like ireland.Opposite policies. In the end inflation will win as ECB will give up the fight. More can kicking someone else can fix it down the line.
Jean Trichet remember him!He raised rates during recession but we were told he was no friend of Ireland and he was replaced by Dragi who cut rates and increased the money supply. Everyone partied again. Well now the inflation is way worse having not dealt with it in 2008.
The biggest factor countries facing housing crises have in common is a decade of low interest rates and quantitative easing. It’s obviously the fundamental cause of all this.
Those countries didn’t all have “right wing” governments oppressing the younger populations at the behest of their developer party donors. And their housing problems won’t be solved by socialist populists taking power, pretending the civil servants in the treasury motivated by sheer evil are standing guard over endless amounts of cash which could otherwise be thrown at any problem to make it go away. As if you could buy more houses or even more builders like an off-the-shelf product.
Is it time we introduced a basic exam as part of the voter registration process? Why should somebody with nothing between their ears get a say on how things get run?
I’m on record on the pod swing the same thing - it’s got a lot to do with low interest rates. But Japan, with zero interest rates for much longer than us, but with no housing crisis, is the obvious counter example. One that doesn’t downplay the role of rates but says that multiple other factors can also be important.
I think a lot more needs to be made of political parties like Sinn Fein, Labour and the Social Democrats who are constantly crying crocodile tears about the housing crisis yet whose TDs and Councillors are usually leading opposition to new housing projects. It's galling to listen to Holly Cairns every week in the Dáil whinging about home young people not being able to own a home while her party (according to the Irish Independent Soc Dem TDs/councillors have objected to approx 3 thousand new houses/apartments). https://m.independent.ie/irish-news/holly-cairns-backs-social-democrats-tds-over-string-of-objections-to-new-builds/a1939944952.html.
Unfortunately lot of people see the likes of SF and the Soc Dems as the answer to the housing crisis and can't or won't see the link between objections and scarcity of units to buy.
Thanks - believe it or not we get criticised, lot, for making the very same points! Some people ask us not to keep going on about it.
SF could really help solve the housing crisis. If they increased income taxes and bring their scapegoating of private enterprise and big business into government, they will stifle investment and chase a lot of the well paid jobs out of the country! That’ll definitely help bring house prices down.
Former SD leader Roisin Shorthall objected to housing in her area by saying it would “completely distort the area” whatever that means as it’s an urban area anyway.Politicians always play to their base. Governments only drive up prices with their mad policies ie help to buy, shared equity schemes. Rent controls and excessive regulations. Objections by TDs.
All this does is increase prices.
This affordable housing we are supposed to get is all a myth. Inflation will win out once the giveaway budget is done in Autumn.
Best thing government can do is leave it to the free market and stay out of it.
I agree the constant meddling with the market has been counterproductive. The idea that we have a “free market” for housing and this has failed to deliver is an utter nonsense. We have a very heavily regulated dysfunctional market.
It’s not as if builders and developers are free to develop C BER rated homes using basic materials that would have more than sufficed 15 years ago.
What also bugs me is arguments like we used to build big housing estates when we were a poor country so why can’t they do that now? You mean it was easily to build when unemployment was really high so labour was really cheap, and we were building freezing cold poured concrete houses in fields with barely a functioning road leading to them and nothing else around but horses for kids to play with?
Memory is our most unreliable friend.
Yes ECB massive money printing and low interest rates free for all is now catching up with them. Now you have ECB trying well for now take money out of system but governments wanting to keep their voters happy with more welfare. Tax cuts and spending promises like ireland.Opposite policies. In the end inflation will win as ECB will give up the fight. More can kicking someone else can fix it down the line.
Jean Trichet remember him!He raised rates during recession but we were told he was no friend of Ireland and he was replaced by Dragi who cut rates and increased the money supply. Everyone partied again. Well now the inflation is way worse having not dealt with it in 2008.
The biggest factor countries facing housing crises have in common is a decade of low interest rates and quantitative easing. It’s obviously the fundamental cause of all this.
Those countries didn’t all have “right wing” governments oppressing the younger populations at the behest of their developer party donors. And their housing problems won’t be solved by socialist populists taking power, pretending the civil servants in the treasury motivated by sheer evil are standing guard over endless amounts of cash which could otherwise be thrown at any problem to make it go away. As if you could buy more houses or even more builders like an off-the-shelf product.
Is it time we introduced a basic exam as part of the voter registration process? Why should somebody with nothing between their ears get a say on how things get run?
I’m on record on the pod swing the same thing - it’s got a lot to do with low interest rates. But Japan, with zero interest rates for much longer than us, but with no housing crisis, is the obvious counter example. One that doesn’t downplay the role of rates but says that multiple other factors can also be important.