High Rents In Silicon Valley

[normando]

Past several years, Silicon Valley had increase of 55,000 jobs but only 2,100 housing units were built. With such high demand, housing prices gone up and that means rentals.too. Houses almost double from 2011 and rents gone up but not double. However, tenants have made themselves loud and clear that they want government officials to stop the large rent increases. There's so much government can do but the pressure is there.

In San Francisco, there was a measure to put a temporary stop in building new apartments because new building gentrify the area increasing overall rents. Fortunately the ballot did not past last year.

Last night in San Mateo, residents complain at a community meeting. One said the old are being pushed out by the young techies. My teenage daughter didn't understand why it's bad for young wanting to live in the area. Why the old get special privileges where to live. There was a 90 year lady being evicted and attorneys have gotten involved to stop the eviction.

Today in the news, I saw how high tech is helping her. There is a Gofund website and she has already gotten $25,000 to help her. That's great how private citizens can help.

 

[Tim The Enchanter]

In San Francisco, there was a measure to put a temporary stop in building new apartments

Because you don't have enough apts? Makes no sense, but you say it didn't pass, so good.

Around here I see pretty big apartments going up here and there, all over. Good,w e need more housing it seems.
Seems like every piece of vacant land is restarting plans to build they shelved in 2007.
Or something more grandiose. There are multiple big cranes scattered around Hollywood and DTLA.
They are building some big big stuff. So jobs will be cranking for a few years.
Once it's all built, I bet we'll be over built again, crash.

Hopefully first I can cash out and will be raising my lonely dental floss in Montana.

 

[normando]

The poor area in the Mission have low rents from rent control. If new buildings were to be built, the new apartments will get high rents especially from the new techies.
The existing tenants in the Mission area afraid the area will be improved which means rents will go up. The area now is rough so rents are not as high but if area becomes "nice", landlords can get higher rents when tenants vacate their premise. It's a game here. Landlords has to pay tenants to move out and even higher payments if tenants are elderly. Owners are can remodeled the units and pass on the cost of the remodeling in which case the poor tenants can't pay and they have to move. Older tenants want no change whereas young people need place to live.

San Francisco has so many young people from 10 years ago. I don't recognize the city anymore. I suspect a tech bubble may pop and then the young people will leave and rents will go back down. I hope that doesn't happen. It will hurt many lives.

It's incredible the jobs here. I base it on freeway traffic. During rush hour, FWY 280 from San Jose to San Francisco is packed with cars. 20 years ago it wasn't like that. It was an easy drive. San Francisco is a bedroom community now for young people.

I know the demographics predict a slowing population in general with low birth rates but with so many people coming here and staying here from all over the world, I don't see a slowdown. With land constraints, more jobs, and demand for more housing, home prices and rents will continue to increase.

 

[Terrel L. Shields]

My teenage daughter didn't understand why it's bad for young wanting to live in the area. Why the old get special privileges where to live. There was a 90 year lady being evicted

Perhaps your child should think a little deeper. I was working in Glenwood Springs when the last native residential homeowner was driven out of Aspen by high taxes. Taxes so high it was more than her SS check. Her son couldn't afford them any longer. She had lived there her whole life. My farm will pass into the seventh generation from the original patent, I would hate to be run off it by governments or a bunch of money grubbing millennials.

 

[Tim The Enchanter]

My farm will pass into the seventh generation from the original patent,

Pretty amazing these days.

We have only been on our homestead about 6 years.
It will pass to another buyer in due course of events. Sale!

 

[Terrel L. Shields]

Pretty amazing these days.

Ours is the last one traced back to pre-Civil War in this township. There is one that traces to the 1880's. The rest cannot trace more than 100 yr. And few over 50 remain. There were only 4 pages to my uncle's abstract when he sold in 1994. That was the first time it was mortgaged.

 

[normando]

San Francisco has rent control for almost 23 years. This year the allowable increase in rents is 1.6% based on some formula with CPI. Since 2004, the allowable increase has not gone higher than 2.2%.
The restraints on rents have prevented residential properties with rentals from increasing as fast as nearby communities. In another words, properties in San Francisco could be higher without rent control.

 

[Restrain]

Terrell, my aunt still lives on a piece of the original farm in Texas that has been in the family from before Texas was a state. Same with some other farms in the area. But they are becoming fewer and fewer, as farming is declining.

 

[normando]

Update on 97 year old lady being evicted. She ha filed a lawsuit yesterday accusing the landlord of illegally forcing her out. She has lived there for 66 years and claims she has a verbal agreement to live their for rest of her life. The granddaughter died leaving her husband the owner. The old lady has an online fundraiser at $45,000 as of yesterday. She's paying rent about $960 and market rent is at least $2,500.
I thought verbal contracts for real estate over a year needed to be in writing. I hope this case won't change that precedent.

 

[Noreen]

Perhaps your child should think a little deeper. I was working in Glenwood Springs when the last native residential homeowner was driven out of Aspen by high taxes. Taxes so high it was more than her SS check. Her son couldn't afford them any longer. She had lived there her whole life. My farm will pass into the seventh generation from the original patent, I would hate to be run off it by governments or a bunch of money grubbing millennials.

Exactly, plus the elderly that are considered to be "over housed" ( a term a snooting MA candidate used & was run out of the race) worked 30 years to pay off their notes, they did not walk away from their debt.