Housing becomes legal and feasible
Capacity and approval reform change what may be built.
Follow the causal chain
Legalized is not permitted. Permitted is not completed.
Good evidence follows a reform from legal capacity through applications, permits, construction, occupancy, vacancy, and rents.
01Legal
02Permitted
03Started
04Completed
05Occupied
A reform can be meaningful yet produce little immediate construction because projects take time or other constraints still bind. Conversely, a permit announcement is not a household moving into a finished home.
Projects apply, receive permits, and start
Financing and market conditions determine which opportunities move forward.
Completed homes enter the market
Only then can occupied supply directly change vacancy and competition.
A simple example
Reading an early result
No rent effect after 12 months is called proof of failure.
First inspect applications, permits, starts, and completions at plausible lags.
Judge each stage with the right outcome and enough time for that stage to occur.
See the evidence
Strong evidenceA city cannot build homes it has made illegal.Read the studies →Strong evidenceLegal on paper is not the same as buildable in practice.Read the studies →