Progressives Must Talk About HomeownershipPaul Hogarthbyline‚ Jun. 24‚ 2008Sunday’s SF Chronicle had another front-page story about how families are leaving the City – due to the lack of homeownership opportunities for households making less than $150,000. As usual, there was little analysis about how we got there – and no policy solutions on how to stem this exodus. And we already know what anti-progressives like Plan C have to offer: more condominium conversions, even if it decimates our rental housing stock by evicting tenants who can’t afford to buy real estate. While that’s the wrong solution, progressives need to stand up with ideas of their own to address this glaring problem. Tenant protections are crucial, but until we also talk about expanding middle-class housing we are fighting a losing battle – as the City gets more gentrified every year. And as long as the Left keeps talking about housing for the poor (but not housing for the middle class), our capacity to grow as a local political movement will remain illusory. |