[noahbp]

https://x.com/nickgerli1/status/2006872715316121750

Permitting reform made Austin, Texas the second-most affordable city in America by rent to income ratio.

>There are neighborhoods full of affordable new construction houses not far from where I live. They sell slowly because people would rather live in the popular areas.

Mortgage rates rose and property prices have not yet fallen to match reality. I would bet that this is a much stronger factor in preventing those new homes from selling rather than buyers simply having a preference for different neighborhoods.

[bombcar]

The mortgage rate change has an insanely huge effect (which means that keeping them artificially low for 20 years has a similar effect the other way) - and it’s worse right now because anyone who owns a house with a mortgage would significantly increase their payment if they sold and bought an identical house next door. So people just aren’t moving.