But seriously, anything that increases demand, like making it easier to buy a house using your 401k just increases house prices. Where are all the “rent control is bad economics” folks now?
Complaining about zoning even though in a large portion of America, zoning is orthogonal to housing affordability [0] and supply, especially because no bank wants to finance residential real estate anymore - they'd all rather invest in commercial real estate which has better and more consistent returns (logistics parks, data centers, factories during CHIPS and IRA) [1].
al_borland•1h ago
I also found it odd that the article kept referencing “investors”. The goal should be affordable homes for normal people who need housing, not real estate investors.
alephnerd•1h ago
Germany also enacted a similar law back in 2008, allowing for the Wohn-Riester, which is basically a 401k but for home purchases or paying off your principal. Allowing a 401k to be used for both retirement and home purchases allows for it to become a unified Riester.