Nathan Lauster
@lausterna.bsky.social
UBC sociologist, demographer, housing & urban regulation scholar, author, immigrant, blogs at https://homefreesociology.com/
"While strengthening local government is an admirable goal, I do not believe that preserving local control over land use is more important than building homes."
Good faith discussion of strategies and stakes in housing shortage vs. local control debates (mostly California content, but BC-relevant!)
Good faith discussion of strategies and stakes in housing shortage vs. local control debates (mostly California content, but BC-relevant!)
I wrote about state-level ADU reform and the differences between @strongtowns.org and YIMBYism. www.maxdubler.com/blog/2025/11...
On The Tension Between YIMBYism and Strong Towns — Max Dubler
Special thanks to those who gave their thoughtful feedback on this piece. The past couple of months have seen quite a bit of Discourse about the differences between Strong Towns and YIMB...
www.maxdubler.com
November 10, 2025 at 10:12 PM
"While strengthening local government is an admirable goal, I do not believe that preserving local control over land use is more important than building homes."
Good faith discussion of strategies and stakes in housing shortage vs. local control debates (mostly California content, but BC-relevant!)
Good faith discussion of strategies and stakes in housing shortage vs. local control debates (mostly California content, but BC-relevant!)
Reposted by Nathan Lauster
42% of residents and 37% of businesses surveyed supported a 5% property tax increase in order to maintain the current level of services in the city of Vancouver
but wait there’s more
a lot more
1/?
council.vancouver.ca/20251112/doc...
but wait there’s more
a lot more
1/?
council.vancouver.ca/20251112/doc...
November 10, 2025 at 5:25 PM
42% of residents and 37% of businesses surveyed supported a 5% property tax increase in order to maintain the current level of services in the city of Vancouver
but wait there’s more
a lot more
1/?
council.vancouver.ca/20251112/doc...
but wait there’s more
a lot more
1/?
council.vancouver.ca/20251112/doc...
Nice piece most prominently featuring First Nation-led projects in BC but also touching on others across Canada, as well as talking to those who've moved into the lower-cost leasehold arrangements! www.cbc.ca/radio/costof...
Could a rise in Indigenous-led developments move the needle on Canada's housing shortage? | CBC Radio
From Squamish Nation in B.C. to Millbrook First Nation in N.S., housing developments led by Indigenous peoples are on the rise. Often offered through leaseholds, some say these homes are helping with ...
www.cbc.ca
November 9, 2025 at 9:30 PM
Nice piece most prominently featuring First Nation-led projects in BC but also touching on others across Canada, as well as talking to those who've moved into the lower-cost leasehold arrangements! www.cbc.ca/radio/costof...
Loved this simple image from @tomflood.bsky.social set behind the panel at the Life After Cars event hosted by @visionzerovancouver.ca.
Happy to join @thewaroncars.bsky.social and happy my City Councillor @lucymaloney.bsky.social was up on stage too.
Happy to join @thewaroncars.bsky.social and happy my City Councillor @lucymaloney.bsky.social was up on stage too.
November 9, 2025 at 6:14 AM
Loved this simple image from @tomflood.bsky.social set behind the panel at the Life After Cars event hosted by @visionzerovancouver.ca.
Happy to join @thewaroncars.bsky.social and happy my City Councillor @lucymaloney.bsky.social was up on stage too.
Happy to join @thewaroncars.bsky.social and happy my City Councillor @lucymaloney.bsky.social was up on stage too.
Pretty consistent pattern where Yaletown and Coal Harbour run much more Conservative than the rest of Downtown Vancouver, but still a good year for Hedy Fry.
(note: it's always a good year for Hedy Fry).
(note: it's always a good year for Hedy Fry).
November 8, 2025 at 7:46 PM
Pretty consistent pattern where Yaletown and Coal Harbour run much more Conservative than the rest of Downtown Vancouver, but still a good year for Hedy Fry.
(note: it's always a good year for Hedy Fry).
(note: it's always a good year for Hedy Fry).
"...if there is something to be taken from this decision, it is just to remember that the concept of Aboriginal title isn’t going to go away... it’s something that the province needs to deal with and that the best way to deal with that is through a nation to nation negotiation process."
A B.C. Supreme Court ruling on Aboriginal title being granted to the Cowichan Tribes in B.C. has led to a lot of anger and misinterpretation in the province.
To clear up the facts, APTN News spoke with an expert on Aboriginal title cases.
To clear up the facts, APTN News spoke with an expert on Aboriginal title cases.
Cowichan Tribes decision: What does it really mean? - APTN News
www.aptnnews.ca
November 7, 2025 at 5:46 PM
"...if there is something to be taken from this decision, it is just to remember that the concept of Aboriginal title isn’t going to go away... it’s something that the province needs to deal with and that the best way to deal with that is through a nation to nation negotiation process."
Fascinating how the "median single-family home" gets picked up as the easy basis for tax comparison here, despite lack of representativeness overall.
e.g. note that's a distribution reflecting only ~15% households in Vancouver - skewed toward wealthiest - compared to closer to ~40% in PoCo.
e.g. note that's a distribution reflecting only ~15% households in Vancouver - skewed toward wealthiest - compared to closer to ~40% in PoCo.
November 5, 2025 at 11:41 PM
Fascinating how the "median single-family home" gets picked up as the easy basis for tax comparison here, despite lack of representativeness overall.
e.g. note that's a distribution reflecting only ~15% households in Vancouver - skewed toward wealthiest - compared to closer to ~40% in PoCo.
e.g. note that's a distribution reflecting only ~15% households in Vancouver - skewed toward wealthiest - compared to closer to ~40% in PoCo.
Reposted by Nathan Lauster
Vancouver recently adopted a plan to create simplified apartment zones in parts of the city (broadway and cambie mostly).
We've started looking at what might be possible with single-stair buildings.
Here's an R3 zoned site comprised of two 33x100 lots.
The zoning allows ~2.2FSR and six storeys.
We've started looking at what might be possible with single-stair buildings.
Here's an R3 zoned site comprised of two 33x100 lots.
The zoning allows ~2.2FSR and six storeys.
November 5, 2025 at 8:18 PM
Vancouver recently adopted a plan to create simplified apartment zones in parts of the city (broadway and cambie mostly).
We've started looking at what might be possible with single-stair buildings.
Here's an R3 zoned site comprised of two 33x100 lots.
The zoning allows ~2.2FSR and six storeys.
We've started looking at what might be possible with single-stair buildings.
Here's an R3 zoned site comprised of two 33x100 lots.
The zoning allows ~2.2FSR and six storeys.
No luck capturing the Super Moon before the clouds rolled in, but I did witness a murder!
So have some crows enjoying the sights of the City prior to the evening commute.
So have some crows enjoying the sights of the City prior to the evening commute.
November 5, 2025 at 1:04 AM
No luck capturing the Super Moon before the clouds rolled in, but I did witness a murder!
So have some crows enjoying the sights of the City prior to the evening commute.
So have some crows enjoying the sights of the City prior to the evening commute.
Reposted by Nathan Lauster
Hot takes on climate implications of the 2025 Cdn budget. On one hand, lots of emphasis on investment in the low-carbon economy of the future, and using GHG reductions/$ as a standard for public investments. On the other, embrace of and subsidies for LNG as clean energy. \1
November 4, 2025 at 11:10 PM
Hot takes on climate implications of the 2025 Cdn budget. On one hand, lots of emphasis on investment in the low-carbon economy of the future, and using GHG reductions/$ as a standard for public investments. On the other, embrace of and subsidies for LNG as clean energy. \1
Ok, lots to sort through with the budget.
But I'm going to go ahead and endorse Canada joining Eurovision
But I'm going to go ahead and endorse Canada joining Eurovision
November 4, 2025 at 9:40 PM
Ok, lots to sort through with the budget.
But I'm going to go ahead and endorse Canada joining Eurovision
But I'm going to go ahead and endorse Canada joining Eurovision
Reposted by Nathan Lauster
Is social media dying? How much has Twitter changed as it became X? Which party now dominates the conversation?
Using nationally representative ANES data from 2020 & 2024, I map how the U.S. social media landscape has transformed.
Here are the key take-aways 🧵
arxiv.org/abs/2510.25417
Using nationally representative ANES data from 2020 & 2024, I map how the U.S. social media landscape has transformed.
Here are the key take-aways 🧵
arxiv.org/abs/2510.25417
October 30, 2025 at 8:09 AM
Is social media dying? How much has Twitter changed as it became X? Which party now dominates the conversation?
Using nationally representative ANES data from 2020 & 2024, I map how the U.S. social media landscape has transformed.
Here are the key take-aways 🧵
arxiv.org/abs/2510.25417
Using nationally representative ANES data from 2020 & 2024, I map how the U.S. social media landscape has transformed.
Here are the key take-aways 🧵
arxiv.org/abs/2510.25417
Reposted by Nathan Lauster
Someone in my neighborhood got FED. UP.
October 31, 2025 at 6:16 PM
Someone in my neighborhood got FED. UP.
Pumpkin testing... 1... 2... 3... pumpkin testing...
October 31, 2025 at 5:45 AM
Pumpkin testing... 1... 2... 3... pumpkin testing...
Reposted by Nathan Lauster
Everyone who makes money on housing understands that strict zoning and politicized permitting is good for landlords and bad for tenants.
New housing stops landlords from raising rents—take it from the CEO of AvalonBay, one of NYC's largest landlords:
"We're well-positioned… we face significantly less new supply. Land entitled for multifamily is hard to come by, the amount of time it takes to get those entitlements… sets us up well.”
"We're well-positioned… we face significantly less new supply. Land entitled for multifamily is hard to come by, the amount of time it takes to get those entitlements… sets us up well.”
October 30, 2025 at 10:59 PM
Everyone who makes money on housing understands that strict zoning and politicized permitting is good for landlords and bad for tenants.
An example of Small-Scale Neighbour Opposition more easily overcome with help from the province's Small-Scale Multi-Unit Housing (SSMUH) requirements.
Chuckling at the staffer's "YES, this developer will put in sidewalks for THEIR lot, but you misers still need to pay for the REST of the sidewalk!"
Chuckling at the staffer's "YES, this developer will put in sidewalks for THEIR lot, but you misers still need to pay for the REST of the sidewalk!"
October 30, 2025 at 4:55 PM
An example of Small-Scale Neighbour Opposition more easily overcome with help from the province's Small-Scale Multi-Unit Housing (SSMUH) requirements.
Chuckling at the staffer's "YES, this developer will put in sidewalks for THEIR lot, but you misers still need to pay for the REST of the sidewalk!"
Chuckling at the staffer's "YES, this developer will put in sidewalks for THEIR lot, but you misers still need to pay for the REST of the sidewalk!"
Reposted by Nathan Lauster
Good writeup of how the Trump administration has used housing as one of the justifications for their deportations, and how that fits into a history of US anti-immigrant housing policy.
Someone should write a paper on Housing Nationalism…
Someone should write a paper on Housing Nationalism…
Deportations can reduce the housing construction workforce, leading to fewer units built and higher costs - contrary to claims that they lower prices, according to a sociologist who studies housing. #immigration buff.ly/Dfakz6o
The Trump administration’s anti-immigrant housing policy reflects a long history of xenophobia in public housing
Anti-immigrant housing policies have been cast as a way for citizens to access more housing, but they fail to prevent the shortages driving the crises.
theconversation.com
October 30, 2025 at 1:15 AM
Good writeup of how the Trump administration has used housing as one of the justifications for their deportations, and how that fits into a history of US anti-immigrant housing policy.
Someone should write a paper on Housing Nationalism…
Someone should write a paper on Housing Nationalism…
Reposted by Nathan Lauster
I wish there was a way to convey how much of a big deal this is to me, I wish you could feel it.
Our work on housing policy, condensed in a single report, has finally been translated to English. You can download it here:
carrefour.vivreenville.org/publication/...
(Click "Télécharger le PDF")
Our work on housing policy, condensed in a single report, has finally been translated to English. You can download it here:
carrefour.vivreenville.org/publication/...
(Click "Télécharger le PDF")
Opening Doors | Publications | Carrefour Vivre en Ville
Consultez notre publication « Opening Doors ». Carrefour Vivre en Ville
carrefour.vivreenville.org
October 29, 2025 at 10:50 PM
I wish there was a way to convey how much of a big deal this is to me, I wish you could feel it.
Our work on housing policy, condensed in a single report, has finally been translated to English. You can download it here:
carrefour.vivreenville.org/publication/...
(Click "Télécharger le PDF")
Our work on housing policy, condensed in a single report, has finally been translated to English. You can download it here:
carrefour.vivreenville.org/publication/...
(Click "Télécharger le PDF")
This is actually an interesting dive into BC Assessment practices (and lack of update since 1986!)
But also, and hear me out, what if in addition to a tax on property we also had something crazy like a tax on carbon emissions to draw on for revenue? www.cbc.ca/news/canada/...
But also, and hear me out, what if in addition to a tax on property we also had something crazy like a tax on carbon emissions to draw on for revenue? www.cbc.ca/news/canada/...
B.C. communities could lose millions as pipeline companies set to pay lower property taxes | CBC News
B.C. Assessment has proposed a revision to its gathering and transmission pipeline cost model, which could leave B.C. communities short hundreds of thousands of dollars in tax revenue.
www.cbc.ca
October 29, 2025 at 5:05 PM
This is actually an interesting dive into BC Assessment practices (and lack of update since 1986!)
But also, and hear me out, what if in addition to a tax on property we also had something crazy like a tax on carbon emissions to draw on for revenue? www.cbc.ca/news/canada/...
But also, and hear me out, what if in addition to a tax on property we also had something crazy like a tax on carbon emissions to draw on for revenue? www.cbc.ca/news/canada/...
Crow surveys the morning
October 29, 2025 at 3:32 PM
Crow surveys the morning
Reposted by Nathan Lauster
New Lewis Center at UCLA report by Paavo Monkkonen on French social housing.
Is the cost rental and financing model upstream of France’s ability to build large number of units without deep subsidies?
escholarship.org/content/qt8d...
Is the cost rental and financing model upstream of France’s ability to build large number of units without deep subsidies?
escholarship.org/content/qt8d...
October 29, 2025 at 3:59 AM
New Lewis Center at UCLA report by Paavo Monkkonen on French social housing.
Is the cost rental and financing model upstream of France’s ability to build large number of units without deep subsidies?
escholarship.org/content/qt8d...
Is the cost rental and financing model upstream of France’s ability to build large number of units without deep subsidies?
escholarship.org/content/qt8d...
Reposted by Nathan Lauster
"Conceptualizing and provisioning what people need is a far less abstract task than somehow ascertaining what each person deserves, and giving it to them." www.liberalcurrents.com/the-utopiani...
The Utopianism of the Meritocrats
Trumpism has long been characterized by a desperate retreat from the dangers of thinking, making a heavy reliance on cliches a requirement. One of those cliches endlessly parroted by the administratio...
www.liberalcurrents.com
October 28, 2025 at 8:35 PM
"Conceptualizing and provisioning what people need is a far less abstract task than somehow ascertaining what each person deserves, and giving it to them." www.liberalcurrents.com/the-utopiani...
Reposted by Nathan Lauster
To people looking for a home today, writes @dannyoleksiuk.bsky.social, it matters a great deal whether that home is built next year, or in ten. Re-legalizing small apartment buildings throughout our cities would create more homes faster. www.sightline.org/2025/10/28/t...
To Build Fast, Think Small | Sightline Institute
How re-legalizing small apartment buildings would spur the homes city dwellers need now.
www.sightline.org
October 28, 2025 at 5:37 PM
To people looking for a home today, writes @dannyoleksiuk.bsky.social, it matters a great deal whether that home is built next year, or in ten. Re-legalizing small apartment buildings throughout our cities would create more homes faster. www.sightline.org/2025/10/28/t...
Late evening sun on the tulip trees of W. 10th, decked out in their finest Fall regalia
October 28, 2025 at 12:11 AM
Late evening sun on the tulip trees of W. 10th, decked out in their finest Fall regalia
Reposted by Nathan Lauster
Do young people face higher shelter costs than their older compatriots? @lausterna.bsky.social and I look into this question and the underlying mechanisms that can lead to age disparities in shelter costs.
Age Disparity in Shelter Cost per Room – Mountain Doodles
Housing sometimes feels like a generational issue – because it is.
doodles.mountainmath.ca
October 27, 2025 at 3:49 PM
Do young people face higher shelter costs than their older compatriots? @lausterna.bsky.social and I look into this question and the underlying mechanisms that can lead to age disparities in shelter costs.