Fees and taxes don’t equate to affordability

Articles in local publications are often great “thought generators” and the link below is yet another example of this. No doubt the market for apartments, especially if you’re a prospective resident, is difficult. Rising rents are almost entirely because there isn’t enough supply to meet the high demand in places where people want to live (e.g., near the downtown core). As Tyson Feaster notes in the link below, real estate taxes and utility fees have increased faster than rents in the last 15 years–yet it’s considerably more popular to direct blame at developers and landlords for the lack of affordable housing.

The long-term answer is complicated and, among other things requires more product supply and more thought, than simply additional taxes.

Big Fees won’t make Seattle housing more affordable