Developers do not make money on empty apartments, this is the dumbest theory of housing.

The sniping and misrepresentation from Tim Sneesby is unconstructive. No-one says "planning is the primary constraint on housing supply". And an author clarifying what his book is not about should not be taken as a rebuttal of what the book actually does say. thefifthestate.com.au/columns/spin...

Why can't expert researchers justify my wishful thinking? We see this in discussions over climate change, vaccination, flouridation. Now tax.

This brilliant article describes the link between Canada’s poor economic growth and our restrictive municipal housing policies. “Canada cannot build a 21st-century economy with a 20th-century housing regime”

This @ohtheurbanity.bsky.social video provides a great overview of why rent control alone and public housing alone will not solve the housing shortage. The only way out of a housing shortage is to build more housing, both public and market-rate. We need a multi-faceted approach. #a2council

The humble & affordable 3 storey walk up flats, so common in 60’s-80’s, can’t be built today; -no lift -needs sprinklers & pumps -slabs too thin -no thermal or acoustic insulation -parking non-compliant -windows too open List goes on & makes housing all the more expensive, esp what should be easy

Perhaps instead of claiming that student housing is crowding out apartments, Randwick council might consider zoning additional capacity in Kensington and Kingsford? They have the ability to do that www.abc.net.au/news/2026-03...

Another paper (among many) finding that inclusionary zoning requirements backfire. In contrast, when I ask advocates of affordable housing requirements for evidence they cannot provide any.

Medium vs High Density: Why Do We Have to Choose?

The trickiest thing about arguing for more dense housing? Half the people who object say it’ll just be luxury housing for the rich. And the other half say you’re just building undesirable slums no one wants to live in.

new from me: a story about VACANCY CHAINS, the idea that underlies the argument that more housing is good even if you can't afford it www.theatlantic.com/ideas/2026/0...

Last night Willoughby council decided to lock up more housing under heritage protection within 800m of a train and metro station. Decisions like that across Sydney and Australia lead directly to the reality outlined in the SMH this morning. www.smh.com.au/property/new...

We have known for decades that so-called “inclusionary zoning” is bad policy. Nonetheless, it is politically durable because it lets elected officials pose as friends of the poor while indulging their NIMBY constituents’ desire to block new housing in their neighborhoods.

Another new paper on housebuilding and vacancy chains, this time with data on every Swiss resident & housing unit! An interesting context given Switzerland's high immigration, very large rented sector and strong tenancy rent controls... frederickluser.github.io/files/Moving...

It's past time that the state government stepped in and prevented councils from weaponising heritage controls against housing. Not just preventing overreach like here in Willoughby. Across Sydney, but inner city councils ate the worst offenders by far

This is what winning looks like.

Cities are the vital engines of the Australian economy, and how we build them matters. This is a vital evening for those passionate about solving the housing crisis, and building more affordable, liveable, and sustainable Australian cities. events.humanitix.com/order-withou...

Both sides agree we need to cut red tape. cdn.liberal.org.au/pdf/2026-Der... Good. But there is too much emphasis on compliance costs. The costs of prohibitions are typically far greater. The main problem isn't that regulations make things difficult. It's they stop worthwhile things altogether. 1/4

For decades, the loudest voices in planning were saying "No." We started YIMBY Melbourne to say "Yes." The Guardian credits that shift with driving a "planning policy revolution." Proof that when you show up with evidence & optimism, you can change policy!

This is a cartoon about housing.

We just relaunched our website! We've been around for a few years now and thought we should show off all the work our volunteers have been doing. New and improved with news stories, all our newsletters and every bit of advocacy we've done!

Road charging is being overhauled, as electric vehicles erode fuel excise. A government that learns from overseas experience would introduce congestion charges. After one year, New York’s charge is a clear success. www.nytimes.com/interactive/...

These are 10 of my favourite #UrbanEconomics & #SpatialEconomics articles published in academic journals in 2025, continuing with a tradition started in 2018 (order is alphabetical by first author, no ranking implied):

New Research → Building more homes reduces displacement

Year 1 data on congestion pricing in Manhattan… * Vehicle traffic: -11% * Foot traffic: +3.4% * Storefront vacancy: -0.9% * Pollution: -22% * Revenue for mass transit: $548M So YES this has been a huge success.

If the government were to provide a million extra homes, as proposed by the Greens, with an annual subsidy of $15k each (the public housing average), that would cost $15 billion a year. @richarddenniss.bsky.social says this is simple. I see big complications. thepoint.com.au/opinions/251...

FINALLY a significant parking reform in Australia! "Apartments in areas across the state considered to be serviced by high-frequency public transport will no longer have a minimum parking requirement." cc @parkingreform.org

Senator Andrew Bragg, the Federal Liberal Party Housing spokesman, spoke at the CIS today. I asked: "Do you want home prices to fall?" Bragg: "I think for first home buyers, the answer is yes." 1/2

Another day, another report saying that we need to upzone to improve housing affordability. It's time for policy makers to listen to the experts and get on with the job!

“The vacated homes were substantially cheaper than the new units and spanned diverse locations and housing types.” When people move into new housing developments, they free up space in older housing. This is good for housing affordability and availability.

Shout out to the recent upgrades to Crown St, Surry Hills. City of Sydney removed several car parks in favour of landscaped outdoor dining areas. Some were turning temporary ones from COVID permanent, others are new. It's a really great area to walk along and enjoy. Here's some before and after:

It's not the regulations that are to blame in most of these examples, it's poor enforcement. We don't need to change the building code, for example; we need to incentivise thorough credible certification. Perhaps bonds would help. 1/2

The Symbolic Politics of Housing: voter dislike of the very actors who could ameliorate the housing shortage they suffer from probably exacerbates it. osf.io/preprints/os...

If you are an ambitious politician looking for tomorrow's issue to champion, @scottwiener.bsky.social, California's top YIMBY legislator, provides a good model to follow.

NIMBYs in Brighton. This is why housing is unaffordable.

Supporters of affordable housing requirements need to point to examples where it has worked. Because there is a lot of evidence of it being counter-productive.

Planning in NSW just got a bit better. What have they changed? Read here: www.sydney.yimby.au/blog/plannin...

3-storey townhouses and apartments should be permitted on all residential land in all capital cities to help fix Australia’s housing crisis. Building more homes will create cheaper housing and more productive cities. Our new report shows how. buff.ly/NfAM6C7 #auspol

'Housing in Australia’s cities is now among the least affordable in the world. At the heart of the problem is the fact we just haven’t built enough homes to meet rising demand.' Catch our latest op-ed in The New Daily:

Greens, socialists and other leftist opponents of zoning liberalisation insist on big spending on social housing instead. Their mistake is viewing upzoning as an alternative to social housing. No, it is a precondition.

Banning AirBnB is a case where the “abundance” framing is useful. I get the desire to prioritize residents over visitors in a housing emergency. But shouldn’t the bigger long-term goal be more housing *and* more hotels? Rather than just managing scarcity?

Who really benefits from expansive heritage overlays? They directly increase housing costs for renters and homeowners, but the public benefit is far from clear. It's time to re-evaluate the trade-offs. 👇

Apparently some Trotskyists don't like the authors of this column. Nevertheless, housing policy in Auckland led to a 28% reduction in rent, relative to other NZ cities. It is foolish not to ask whether other cities around the globe might learn from that.

When the electorate realises that stimulating demand worsens affordability, the Federal government will need to do something to boost housing supply. And not just social housing. Something for the 96% of households who live in market housing.

Lessons from planning reform in NZ. For the UK and everyone. By Former UK Housing Secretary Sir Simon Clarke and NZ housing minister Chris Bishop. Recommended. www.express.co.uk/news/politic...

I'll be in Brisbane next week! As part of my trip, I'll be hosting a more informal event open to anyone at the Queensland University of Technology on Tuesday, October 7th. Details below:

Detailed figures for the freaks out there. I'll be getting more of these on different configurations and include the other four Greater Brisbane councils over the next few weeks.

I've been working with @dbecon.bsky.social to work out some figures on Brisbane's zoning and we started looking at character restrictions. Within 5km of Brisbane's CBD, a whopping 64% of all residential properties have some kind of character restrictions. That's 57% of land or 2,204 hectares.

Sydney remains ground zero for Australia’s housing crisis. Our housing policy expert Brendan Coates gives the NSW government credit for acting to get more housing built – and identifies what should happen now. #auspol #nswpol grattan.edu.au/news/sydney-...