Support NeoGAF

[Marty Chinn]

Million Dollar Shack Documentary (23 min)

With the tech economy booming, home and rental prices in the Bay Area have soared in recent years, creating the country's hottest and most expensive housing market. In San Jose, for example, rents have gone up 26 percent in the past year, the highest increase in the U.S., according to Zumper.

This is all bad news for middle-class families. A household earning the region's median income — $86,944 annually — can afford only 12 percent of the homes for sale in San Francisco, Marin and San Mateo counties, as of Sept. 2015, according to real estate website Trulia.

The message is communicated through a collection of personal anecdotes from Bay Area locals. There's the story of Deb Follingstad whose San Francisco landlord raised the rent on her home in San Francisco's Bernal Heights over 300 percent. And there's the tale of Maryann Creasy Rieger who was forced to commute some 180 miles a day between her home in Fairfield and her job at Yahoo on the Peninsula when CEO Marissa Mayer put an end to telecommuting. Maryann couldn't afford to move closer to her job.

A realtor featured in the film named Ken DeLeon doesn't offer much hope. "As crazy as these prices might seem, I think you're going to see them double in the next six to 10 years. The amazing part — I don't think, it's going to end. I think the fundamental lack of supply and strong demand are going to drive this market forever."

Michelle realizes that she's not at the bottom of the economic totem pole. She worked as a social worker for some 10 years and had jobs in homeless shelters where she helped the most destitute members of the Bay Area. But she says the film isn't about exposing the region's poverty, and instead it's meant to start a discussion about the Bay Area middle class, a group of people that has traditionally been associated with comfort and optimism and is now stressed with economic insecurity.

The middle class has long been made up of many people who support and inspire a community, such as teachers, social workers and artists. Michelle fears that as these people can no longer afford to live in the Bay Area and leave, the region will lose its economic diversity and have a population mirroring a third world country.

"Any society with gross economic disparity isn't going to be a healthy place to live," Michelle said. "I drive a Toyota Corolla that's about eight years old, and I've been noticing recently that all the cars driving by me are Teslas and Mercedes. Something just isn't right."

More info in the article here:

http://www.sfgate.com/aboutsfgate/a...hack-documentary-Bay-Area-housing-6582122.php

As someone who was born and raised in the area with a lot of family here as well as was in the market for a house for five years, a lot of this is something I've experienced or witnessed first hand. The housing market here is unlike anything in the rest of the country. It's just crazy and the madness doesn't look like it's going to end for awhile.

 

[Xamtheking]

Relevant

 

[Bubba T]

The New New York.

 

[titiklabingapat]

NIMBYism won.

SF counter culture pretty much killed itself.

 

[CrocMother]

SF is only 7x7 miles

 

[ISOM]

How do they even employ service workers in SF?

 

[Bubba T]

How do they even employ service workers in SF?

The workers don't live in San Francisco.

 

[Yaboosh]

How do they even employ service workers in SF?

BART is an effective way to get into the city.

 

[titiklabingapat]

SF is only 7x7 miles

They can build up.

And other Bay Area cities outside of SF have plenty of develop-able land being occupied primarily by single family homes.

 

[t26]

NIMBYism won.

SF counter culture pretty much killed itself.

SF is only 7x7 miles

This isn't just about San Francisco, but the entire bay area.

 

[titiklabingapat]

This isn't just about San Francisco, but the entire bay area.

I am aware of that. It's why housing advocates are suing the suburbs too. They have all benefited from the regional economy while failing to adequately address the housing shortage under the guise of 'preserving the character of the neighborhood'. This is still the work of NIMBYism, through and through.

 

[AbortedWalrusFetus]

I am aware of that. It's why housing advocates are suing the suburbs too. They have all benefited from the regional economy while failing to adequately address the housing shortage under the guise of 'preserving the character of the neighborhood'. This is still the work of NIMBYism, through and through.

You are so right. San Francisco has a population density of only 18,000/sq. mi. in the city proper, as I recall. Compare that to Paris, with a density of 55,000/sq. mi. or Manhattan NYC with a population density of 65,000/sq. mi. With proper urban planning San Francisco could triple the amount of housing availability in a short time. If the demand is there, and people are being priced out, it's the logical and just thing to do.

 

[titiklabingapat]

You are so right. San Francisco has a population density of only 18,000/sq. mi. in the city proper, as I recall. Compare that to Paris, with a density of 55,000/sq. mi. or Manhattan NYC with a population density of 65,000/sq. mi. With proper urban planning San Francisco could triple the amount of housing availability in a short time. If the demand is there, and people are being priced out, it's the logical and just thing to do.

Here is a really good article on why that's not possible in the current San Francisco: How San Francisco's Progressives Politics Led to its Housing Affordability Crisis

The very thing that made SF what it is is killing it now.

 

[diffusionx]

Here is a really good article on why that's not possible in the current San Francisco: How San Francisco's Progressives Politics Led to its Housing Affordability Crisis

The very thing that made SF what it is is killing it now.

Last time I was in SF, I was walking around and noticed all the squat two story homes, detached houses, etc. It was pretty and scenic, sure, but I wouldn't necessarily say it is moreso than Brooklyn's brownstones and row houses, and Brooklyn has 2x the population density of SF.

 

[Baliis]

Rent in San Jose is pretty crazy. They're putting up tons and tons of big apartment complexes around where I work, but all the rents for a 1BR are like my entire months pay. I can't even imagine what it's like in SF.

 

[AbortedWalrusFetus]

Here is a really good article on why that's not possible in the current San Francisco: How San Francisco's Progressives Politics Led to its Housing Affordability Crisis

The very thing that made SF what it is is killing it now.

Given the ease with which the tech industry can escape the bonds of physical location it seems like a problem they need to address sooner rather than later.

 

[Purexed]

I'm in the Bay Area (specifically San Jose, San Francisco, and Oakland) about 10 times a year for work, and the topic of housing affordability inevitably comes up all the time with locals. The frustration is deep and heavy as there's no hope a ceiling is in sight. Personally, I'd move away, even if it if meant moving from good family and friends. Hard to happy when you're stuck in an untenable housing situation.

 

[friday]

That one quote says that these massive rent hikes wont stop in the next 10 years, but that is insane. I could see a housing bubble implosion in the next 5 or so years. The sacrifices and cost of living are just too high, I can't believe people and companies are not already tapping out.

 

[diffusionx]

That one quote says that these massive rent hikes wont stop in the next 10 years, but that is insane. I could see a housing bubble implosion in the next 5 or so years. The sacrifices and cost of living are just too high, I can't believe people and companies are not already tapping out.

The prices are going up because people want to live there, not because of some chicanery that has caused prices to inflate. For some reason, it's a highly desirable place to live. It's not really a bubble. When the market crashed in 08, places like Manhattan and SF were not affected. Places like Phoenix or Fresno or LV crashed because these were fundamentally not desirable places. If prices got cut in half tomorrow in SF, more people would just keep moving there.

 

[Marty Chinn]

The prices are going up because people want to live there, not because of some chicanery that has caused prices to inflate. For some reason, it's a highly desirable place to live. It's not really a bubble. When the market crashed in 08, places like Manhattan and SF were not affected. Places like Phoenix or Fresno or LV crashed because these were fundamentally not desirable places. If prices got cut in half tomorrow in SF, more people would just keep moving there.

That's not entirely true. Housing definitely dipped in the Bay Area. That was a great time to buy for a lot of people because the recovery happened pretty quickly and prices in a lot of areas grew past what they were pre-crash. But there definitely was a hit. I remember being shocked at how much value my house lost during the crash.

 

[diffusionx]

That's not entirely true. Housing definitely dipped in the Bay Area. That was a great time to buy for a lot of people because the recovery happened pretty quickly and prices in a lot of areas grew past what they were pre-crash. But there definitely was a hit. I remember being shocked at how much value my house lost during the crash.

Bubbles happen when the market price becomes a lot larger than intrinsic value. Pets.com stock or tulips in Amsterdam were inherently near worthless yet people were paying a shitload for them. Bay Area property has always been really valuable. The prices rebounded quickly because the market price dipped below the intrinsic value.