korrents
Jonathan Hopkins

Jonathan Hopkins

@jonathan-hopkins · 4 positions · On ppll ↗

Housing and development writer at Strong Towns, arguing that the professional, large-scale housing industry cannot produce widespread affordability no matter how it is deregulated or subsidised.

Jonathan Hopkins did not write this page.

We collected these quotes from things they published elsewhere, and every quote links to where it was said. They have no account here and have not endorsed this site. Quotes are word for word; the short line under each one is our own restatement, not their wording. Their own site. Is this you? Claim it or ask us to remove it. Or tell us what is wrong here.

2 of Jonathan Hopkins's claims fit 2 mental models. Most often: Incentives, Trade-offs.

Models we see in what they say

Our reading: their claim applies the idea without naming it. The claim is theirs; filing it here is ours.

Incentives

Look at what people are rewarded for; it explains more behaviour than what they say, your own included.

Used by 85 others

Falling rents are the signal that makes developers stop building, so a city cannot build its way to affordability under the current supply model.

  1. Jonathan Hopkins Housing and development writer at Strong Towns To real estate professionals, slowing growth or declines in rent are often signals to stop building new housing. Some Things YIMBYs Tend To Get Wrong (and Right)strongtowns.org · 30 Jun 2026All korrents from this piece
    Their wordsTo real estate professionals, slowing growth or declines in rent are often signals to stop building new housing.

    ↗Some Things YIMBYs Tend To Get Wrong (and Right)strongtowns.org

    30 Jun 2026

Trade-offs

Every choice gives something up, so name the cost; and check, because some trade-offs everyone assumes are not real.

Used by 60 others

Deregulating enough to make housing broadly affordable would mean legalising housing of the quality nobody is willing to defend.

  1. Jonathan Hopkins Housing and development writer at Strong Towns Making housing widely affordable today through the removal of development regulations would require allowing extremely low quality housing. Some Things YIMBYs Tend To Get Wrong (and Right)strongtowns.org · 30 Jun 2026All korrents from this piece
    Their wordsMaking housing widely affordable today through the removal of development regulations would require allowing extremely low quality housing.

    ↗Some Things YIMBYs Tend To Get Wrong (and Right)strongtowns.org

    30 Jun 2026