Property owners do not get to vote in the USA, not even in the Bay Area. Citizens get to vote.
Citizens that own property are very motivated to vote against construction and so far have shown extreme solidarity against allowing dense construction even in small zones. Meanwhile renters, who appear to be a slim majority of citizens in the area, are not organized and do not vote reliably.
How much any one group may or may not contribute in taxes has very little to do with political outcomes since taxes don't vote. At most there is an indirect effect as city budgets drive strategies to collect more revenue by officials. Those officials still answer only to voting citizens.
>Meanwhile renters, who appear to be a slim majority of citizens in the area, are not organized and do not vote reliably.
Rent control / stabilization gives them an incentive to not allow construction as perhaps they, like all humans, oppose change but now don't have to face the negative consequences of opposing it.
50% of apartments in NYC are under some form of rent control / stabilization.
Even worse, renters groups and community organizations are divided. I never joined the San Francisco Renters Federation because of its devotion to rent control and its hostility to landlords. Similarly, the Council of Community Housing Organizations is focused on raising money to the detriment of making housing.
When the Bay Area Renters Federation and Grow San Francisco started, I felt some joy. Finally, after all these years, here is a housing movement that I can support.
Citizens that own property are very motivated to vote against construction and so far have shown extreme solidarity against allowing dense construction even in small zones. Meanwhile renters, who appear to be a slim majority of citizens in the area, are not organized and do not vote reliably.
How much any one group may or may not contribute in taxes has very little to do with political outcomes since taxes don't vote. At most there is an indirect effect as city budgets drive strategies to collect more revenue by officials. Those officials still answer only to voting citizens.