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Irish Times
4 days ago
- Business
- Irish Times
The housing data is stark: we need to increase supply or reduce demand
One of the golden rules of economics is you can't manage what you can't measure. Managing a problem will be easier using hard evidence, backed by accurate data. It is a business school version of the expression, 'the numbers don't lie'. In contrast, trying to solve real-world problems with ideology, preordained positions, emotions or other iterations of blurry thinking leads to disaster. Only data can reveal the true picture; everything else is just noise and sloganeering, possibly interesting to debate but never the basis for practical, workable policy. Take the biggest issue facing Ireland right now – the housing market. With data and the right model of what drives house prices in real life, we can set policy that is likely to succeed. If the Government really wants to stabilise house prices, it needs to make this an explicit policy objective, and reorientate all other policies around it. Everything should be measured against the benchmark of whether it will lead to stable prices. All other objectives should be subservient to achieving stable house prices for the foreseeable future. For example, if expanding GDP, the tax base or inward investment are measures that compromise the objective of achieving stable house prices, they should be altered to be consistent with the key goal. Basic economics tells us that prices will settle down when supply equals demand. The problem in Ireland is that supply has fallen way below demand for many years, particularly in the past decade. Up until recently, most Government initiatives have been focused on boosting supply rather than limiting demand. The problem with this approach is the data tells us we are stuck with a construction sector that can't build any more than around 35,000 new homes a year. Maybe over time this figure might creep up, but at the moment Ireland has a hard constraint of 35,000 homes a year or thereabouts. So that's the maximum supply at the moment. READ MORE Adjusting the demand for housing downwards to meet this supply would help to stabilise the market. So what drives the demand for housing in Ireland? There are four essential variables driving the housing demand: the natural increase in the population; the average size of an Irish household; the amount of existing housing stock that is old and must be demolished every year; and immigration. Immigration is the only variable that the Government has any material control over. Reduce immigration and housing demand falls, easing the upward pressure on prices, given that we can't build more than around 35,000 houses a year. It is pretty straightforward. Other economic targets – such as expanding GDP, garnering more foreign investment, maintaining the health service by employing immigrants to keep the system afloat or increasing profitability in the economy – might suffer, but if the objective of stabilising house prices is paramount, everything else comes second. [ Ireland needs immigrants. But our economy can't accommodate an infinite number Opens in new window ] Let's look at the data in a bit more detail. An overlooked factor critical to assessing the amount of homes we need for the population is the size of Irish families. When I was a kid, most families on our street had between three and five children, which meant that one house contained possibly seven or more people. We now have 2.5 people on average per household – still the highest in the EU, but falling. Simply put, we need more houses to accommodate families because fewer of us are living in each home. Therefore, to get the amount of new houses we need for the population we must divide any population increases by 2.5. Now let's examine the natural increase which is annual births minus deaths. More babies, more future homes needed. This figure last year was 20,000 – around 55,000 births, versus 35,000 deaths. This 20,000 divided by 2.5 implies 8,000 new homes just to satisfy the natural increase in the State's population. [ The people behind the numbers as Ireland's population grows by nearly a third in 20 years Opens in new window ] A third factor affecting supply is obsolescence, which is basically the number of houses that must be built to replace the decaying old stock. About 150,000 Irish households live in buildings that are over 100 years old, mainly in rural areas. There are around 2.1 million houses in Ireland, therefore an obsolescence rate of 0.5 per cent, which adds up to an additional 10,000 units annually. If you want to be conservative, we'll put this somewhere in the 5,000 – 10,000 range, so let's settle at 7,500. So before we talk about immigration, taking in these three factors above, we need about 15,000 new houses per year just to stand still. How many homes do you think were built in all of last year in Ireland? It was 30,330. This means we have about 15,000 spare new homes for the people who want to come and live here. The data tells us that, in the 12 months to the end of April 2024 , 149,200 people came to Ireland and more than 69,000 left, meaning a net immigration figure of around80,000. Of the more than 140,000 people who came into the country, about 62,400 are either Irish or EU and UK citizens, leaving around 75,000 coming here on work or study visas, or as asylum seekers. These are the only people that the State can refuse entry to. (Although, for example, visa requirements for Ukrainians travelling to Ireland were waived as an emergency measure.) Going back to our model of the housing market, we can see that when the State is building only 30,000 homes a year, we have 15,000 left after the natural increase and obsolescence are taken into account. At an average house size of 2.5, the implication is that to keep house prices stable and keep supply and demand in line, the maximum number of immigrants the Irish housing market can sustain is between 30,000 to 40,000 tops. This figure is a long, long way from the figure for non-EU immigrants who were given work or study visas or asylum last year, let alone the migrants who came from the EU or returning Irish citizens. [ Ireland's dissatisfied voters are moving, but not towards the left Opens in new window ] Now that we have measured, who is going to manage? The data cannot be emoted away. Ireland has a capacity problem. This is not the fault of immigrants who are given visas, but without a rapidly expanding supply of houses, the number of newcomers means prices can't stabilise. The most sensible policy would be to accelerate supply and decelerate demand, increase home building and decrease immigration. The numbers are stark. We can debate, moralise and criticise all we like but the honest conclusion must be that if we want stable, affordable house prices, an honest discussion on population, underpinned by data not emotion, is the only sensible way forward from here.
Forbes
14-07-2025
- Business
- Forbes
Top Startups Use Parental Leave To Win Talent And Scale Sustainably
Will Fan, CEO at NewCampus, a modern business school for emerging markets. At the intersection of education, community and new technology. When I recently became a father, my perspective on leadership and workplace culture shifted dramatically. Parenthood is transformative, and as entrepreneurs building businesses that scale, we have a unique opportunity and responsibility to craft world-class parental leave policies that reflect our values and support our teams. In an era of remote work, where work-life balance and sustainability are crucial, growing companies must consider parental leave as more than an extra perk. Rather, it should be a fundamental pillar of their organizational culture and strategy. Learning From Industry Leaders Leading tech giants have long set the standard for robust parental leave policies. Companies like Google and Salesforce offer extensive parental leave programs, recognizing that supporting employees during one of life's most significant milestones is not only compassionate but smart business. Google provides generous leave periods, financial support and reintegration programs for new parents returning to work. Salesforce complements its leave policy with resources such as child care support and flexible scheduling, underscoring that effective parental leave goes beyond mere time off; it's about comprehensive support. However, world-class parental leave shouldn't be exclusive to large corporations. Growing startups and scale-ups have an incredible chance to differentiate themselves by proactively developing parental leave policies early in their growth journey. Even with limited resources, startups can build innovative and impactful programs tailored to their teams' unique needs. By doing so, growing companies not only attract top talent but also retain high-performing employees whose loyalty and dedication are strengthened through thoughtful support during parenthood. At our own company, we've created more parent-friendly employee strategies to adapt to the needs of our growing team. For example, we operate as a completely remote team, offering working parents the flexibility to manage their family responsibilities effectively. Additionally, we've implemented a four-day workweek, which has significantly reduced calls and inefficient meetings by as much as 45%. Although we're not yet large enough to offer stipends or extensive financial support, flexible working arrangements are a crucial and effective way for smaller businesses to provide meaningful support to parents. As more companies shift toward remote and hybrid work, parental leave policies should evolve accordingly. The remote-work revolution has already dramatically improved flexibility for working parents, but comprehensive parental leave further solidifies this support. Remote or hybrid teams benefit enormously from clear, supportive parental leave frameworks, ensuring that employees don't feel isolated or overwhelmed during critical life transitions. Creating Impactful Parental Leave Policies How can growth-stage companies start building impactful parental leave policies? Conduct surveys and hold discussions to understand their needs and preferences. Different employees have different requirements, some may prioritize longer leave periods, while others seek greater flexibility upon returning to work. Employee input is critical to designing effective, responsive policies. Just as we strive for sustainable business growth, we should aim for sustainability in employee well-being. Companies increasingly acknowledge that sustainable business practices extend beyond finances and environmental impact, they encompass employee health, satisfaction and family life. Providing adequate parental leave and support is a powerful demonstration of a company's commitment to holistic sustainability. Platforms for virtual collaboration, asynchronous communication and online training can significantly ease the transition back to work for new parents. Companies like Zapier, Buffer and Automattic, pioneers in fully remote operations, have successfully integrated technology to support parents returning to work seamlessly. Uncertainty about parental leave policies can cause unnecessary anxiety among employees. By transparently sharing guidelines, expectations and available resources, you create trust and clarity. This transparency empowers employees to plan effectively, fostering a culture of respect and inclusivity. Employee feedback should be actively encouraged and used to regularly improve and adapt parental leave programs. A policy effective today may need updates as your team grows and demographics shift. Continuous improvement signals to employees that their well-being remains a top priority. The Business Case For World-Class Parental Leave Ultimately, building world-class parental leave programs isn't just good for parents; it's also beneficial for businesses. Supporting employees through significant life transitions means they return to work more motivated, focused and loyal. They become ambassadors for your company's culture, attracting further talent and strengthening your employer brand. As leaders, especially those who are new parents ourselves, we must champion these policies. Parenthood offers profound insights into empathy, patience and the value of holistic well-being, enhancing our leadership capacities. Advocating for robust parental leave policies leads to the creation of workplaces that reflect our shared values, ensuring our companies grow sustainably and compassionately. After all, sustainable growth isn't just measured by profit; it's measured by how we invest in the lives of those who make our visions possible. Forbes Business Council is the foremost growth and networking organization for business owners and leaders. Do I qualify?
Khaleej Times
14-07-2025
- Business
- Khaleej Times
Indian universities in UAE: IIMA Dubai's Dh294,000 fee for MBA covers visa, insurance costs
India's top-ranked business school, the Indian Institute of Management Ahmedabad (IIMA), will open its first international campus in Dubai in September 2025, with the cost of its flagship one-year MBA pegged at $80,000 (Dh294,000) — an all-inclusive fee that covers tuition, visa, insurance, and campus facilities. In an exclusive interview with Khaleej Times, Professor Bharat Bhasker, Director of IIM Ahmedabad, said: 'The programme fee for the one-year MBA at IIMA Dubai is $80,000 (including tuition fees, books, course material, visa fees, medical insurance and use of other facilities like library, network, and campus infrastructure). We offer entry and exit scholarships based on merit to all students.' IIMA is currently ranked 27th in the QS Global MBA Rankings, and its inaugural cohort at the international branch campus will consist of 40 to 50 students, with plans to scale up to 900 students over the next decade. Stay up to date with the latest news. Follow KT on WhatsApp Channels. Strategic location, local focus The new campus will be housed at Dubai International Academic City (DIAC) in its initial phase, offering a multicultural academic hub. A permanent campus is set to open by 2029, on land allocated as part of the collaboration between the UAE and India. The announcement followed a high-profile visit in April by a UAE delegation led by Dubai Crown Prince Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum. During the visit, an MoU was signed between Bhasker and Helal Saeed Almarri, Director General of Dubai's Department of Economy and Tourism, marking a milestone in bilateral education cooperation. Research centres to align with D33 agenda IIMA plans to launch two key research centres in the first year of its Dubai operations. 'In the first year of the Dubai Campus, we plan to establish two dedicated research centres — one will focus on case writing and development, and the other will be on start-up incubation,' said Bhasker. 'As the campus grows, we aim to expand our offerings to include a wider range of programmes, including Open Enrolment and Customised Executive Education Programmes.' Long-term, the institute plans to align research with Dubai's D33 economic agenda, with specialised centres in fintech, AI, retail, and supply chain. IIMA is also exploring partnerships with local technology labs working on Artificial Intelligence and robotics. Admissions close soon Applications for the full-time, one-year MBA in Dubai are open until July 31. The admission process is highly selective, following a two-stage evaluation based on valid GMAT or GRE scores taken within the past five years. 'The candidates will require a minimum of four years of full-time work experience after graduation,' Bhasker added. Academic model mirrors India's programme The Dubai MBA will closely resemble IIMA's globally respected MBA for Executives (PGPX) in India, which has been running for two decades and was recently ranked #1 in Career Progress by the Financial Times Global MBA Ranking 2025. 'The programme will be similar to the MBA-PGPX in India, which has been successfully running for two decades and has achieved global recognition. Furthermore, IIM Ahmedabad faculty will teach the first batch in Dubai. Over time, full-time faculty will also be recruited at the Dubai Campus,' said Bhasker. Students will follow a five-term structure, undertake an independent research project, and have the option for international immersion, all designed to provide hands-on exposure to management in different global contexts. 'Our first full-time one-year MBA programme for the Dubai campus is designed to cater to the advanced management learning and upskilling needs of global working professionals and entrepreneurs,' added the Director of IIM Ahmedabad. 'This immersive programme, with IIMA's acclaimed case method pedagogy, aims to equip ambitious professionals with cutting-edge business insights to navigate global market challenges and prepare them for C-suite leadership while aligning with the UAE's vision for innovation, entrepreneurship, and economic growth.' Building regional relevance through case studies Notably, IIMA already has a portfolio of nearly 5,000 case studies, but the Dubai campus will bring a regional lens to its pedagogical approach. 'Our case method pedagogy is the cornerstone to bridge the gap between industry and academia,' said Bhasker. 'We are actively researching and writing cases on organisations in the UAE and GCC to help create pertinent exposure for our students.' Cross-border education also opens new opportunities for knowledge exchange, benefitting both IIMA's Indian and Dubai campuses. 'IIMA is an institute of global repute, which is recognised for excellence in management education, research, and leadership development,' he added. 'Over the past 60 years, our faculty members and alumni have contributed significantly to policy and practice globally, and many of them have also gone on to lead some of the largest organisations in the world.'
Yahoo
15-06-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Do you have buyer's remorse about your new degree? It's OK, these CEOs studied subjects that aren't related to their industries
As freshly minted college graduates look ahead to a tough job market, some may be wondering how useful their degrees might be. But for those looking to climb the ladder in Corporate America, the path to success doesn't always run through business school. Some top CEOs studied subjects that have nothing to do with their industries. If you just got a degree in medieval studies, then congratulations. But if you're not going to pursue that subject further in grad school, then you may be wondering how useful it is in today's job market. Buyer's remorse for new college graduates is nothing new. But those entering the workforce now are facing a slowing economy, high uncertainty among businesses amid President Donald Trump's tariffs, and AI eliminating many entry-level jobs. A deep dive into the leadership of the Fortune 500 shows that many, many, many, many CEOs did indeed get a bachelor's degree in business or a master's degree in business administration. Also, tech bosses often have engineering degrees, finance chiefs have economics or accounting degrees, and pharmaceutical CEOs have medical degrees. But there's still hope. For those looking to climb the ladder in Corporate America, the path to success doesn't always run through business school. Some top CEOs studied subjects that have nothing to do with their industries. A notable example is LinkedIn cofounder and founding CEO Reid Hoffman, who has a bachelor's in 'symbolic systems' from Stanford University, which says it integrates computer science, linguistics, math, philosophy, psychology, and statistics. He then got a master's degree in philosophy from Oxford University. In 2017, he told Business Insider that 'philosophy is a study of how to think very clearly,' and it's been useful in investing and being an entrepreneur. 'Formulating what your investment thesis is, what the strategy is, what the risks with the approach are, what kinds of things you would be doing with it, are all greatly aided by the crispness of thinking that comes with philosophical training,' he added. Similarly, Palantir CEO and cofounder Alex Karp got bachelor's in philosophy from Haverford College, a JD from Stanford Law School and a PhD in neoclassical social theory from Goethe University in Frankfurt. Despite running a data-mining software company that offers AI-powered platforms to governments and businesses, he has said he learned coding on the job. He told the New York Times last year that not getting a business degree actually helped. 'There's nothing that we did at Palantir in building our software company that's in any MBA-made playbook. Not one,' he explained. 'That's why we have been doing so well.' Karp revealed that 'the single most valuable education I had for business' came at the Sigmund Freud Institute, a psychoanalysis research center, where he worked while getting his doctorate. 'You'd be surprised how much analysts talk about their patients. It's disconcerting, actually. You just learn so much about how humans actually think,' he said, adding that he used that knowledge to help motivate his engineers. Among Fortune 500 CEOs, Airbnb's Brian Chesky has a bachelor of fine arts from the Rhode Island School of Design. According to the company, his creative roots are embedded in Airbnb's culture, product and community. 'This design-driven approach has enabled a system of trust that allows strangers to live together, and created a unique business model that facilitates connection and belonging,' it says. Here are some other Fortune 500 leaders who have less conventional educational backgrounds: Juan Andrade, CEO of financial services firm USAA, has a bachelor's in journalism and political science from the University of Florida and a master's in international economics and Latin American studies from the Johns Hopkins University School of Advanced International Studies. Leon Topalian, CEO of steelmaker Nucor, has a bachelor's in marine engineering from the Massachusetts Maritime Academy. Maria Black, CEO of human resources services provider ADP, has a bachelor's in political science and international affairs from the University of Colorado, Boulder. Laura Alber, CEO of home furnishings chain Williams-Sonoma, has a bachelor's in psychology from the University of Pennsylvania. Richard Hayne, CEO of retailer Urban Outfitters, has a bachelor's in social relations from Lehigh University. This story was originally featured on
Forbes
30-05-2025
- Business
- Forbes
Why Is Housing So Expensive? It All Comes Back To Workforce
At a recent Achieve team dinner, the discussion turned to someone's friend, a recent business school graduate, who was raising a search fund in a bid to acquire multiple heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) installation and maintenance businesses. Oddly, several colleagues also knew other recent MBAs who were attempting similar 'HVAC rollups.' Coincidence? An HVAC rollup is a long way from the well-traveled B-school path of joining an investment bank or consulting firm. The conversation pursued whether this was, in fact, a trend. Search funds are by no means new, although it appears they've become more popular for new MBAs. But all agreed on one thing: if there was a meme about new business school grads attempting HVAC rollups, it was indisputable. I doubted it and bet Achieve Principal Cassidy Leventhal $10. Well, the meme-savvy Gen Z analysts began looking and, within seconds, found this one. I paid Cassidy her $10. And although I conceded the trend (and would never underestimate the tendency of MBAs to follow one), the affair of the HVAC rollup meme led me to suspect there's a meme for pretty much everything. Turns out it's not limited to HVAC. New business school grads are also attempting to roll up roofing, plumbing, and landscaping companies. These businesses are easy to understand. So it could be a reaction against complex tech and AI. But it's also because no matter what happens in the economy, 330 million of us need a place to live, and tens of millions are having an extraordinarily hard time. America is missing between four and eight million homes. As in any shortage, prices rise. Adjusted for inflation, new homes cost twice as much as they did in 1960. So the existing housing stock is increasingly out of reach for low- and middle-income families, particularly in coastal states. The shortage of affordable housing is a gargantuan problem that limits quality of life and economic opportunity in nearly every community while leaving nearly a million Americans – including 150,000 children – without a home. The only solution is to build more new houses and apartments. With a shortage of around a million units, California is Ground Zero of the housing crisis. Homes in California cost more than twice the national average. So six million Californian families rent rather than own with two million spending more than half their monthly income on rent. So far California has attempted to tackle the problem by forcing cities and towns to allow apartments in neighborhoods of single-family homes and threatening to strip land-use authority from municipalities that don't approve new housing more quickly. Nonetheless, California's housing crisis continues to grow. What we need more of. getty The fundamental problem is that it's more expensive than ever to build new homes. The cause isn't tariffs on Canadian steel and lumber, at least not yet. It's labor. There are about 250,000 unfilled jobs in the construction sector. Builders can't find enough carpenters, plumbers, or electricians. Without enough new tradespeople, the workforce is aging; since 2018, there's been a 6% drop in the percentage of construction workers below the age of 55. To replace laborers who've labored long enough, builders need to recruit nearly 750,000 new workers each year. And that number is from the Biden years, before the country decided illegal immigrants were the cause of all our problems. (Immigrants – legal and not – constituted over 40% of California's construction workforce.) It's not only building new homes; it's maintaining existing homes. Every year America needs to produce over 40,000 new HVAC technicians. If we don't, things might get uncomfortable. And some recent business school grads might find their rollups at risk. When there aren't enough workers, builders pay more. When Engineering News-Record initiated its construction cost index for non-residential buildings, labor was 38% of total construction cost. Today it's 81%. For housing, Procore, the leading SaaS platform for construction management, reports labor is as much 60% of total cost. And when builders don't have available crews, they turn down projects. The result is that new houses and apartments don't get built and the ones that do get built cost a lot more. Builders aren't totally helpless. Their ability to find new workers isn't limited to driving their F-150s to the Home Depot parking lot to see who happens to be standing around. They can also drive to the nearest high school and try to sell students on a future in home construction. The problem is that students won't be productive on day one, or maybe in year one. They need apprenticeships, internships, or similar earn-and-learn pathways to make the trades attractive: jobs that pay a living wage from the drop, with the promise of making much more as they master the trade. But these programs are expensive to set up. Builders need to invest in recruiting as well as developing and delivering training, both formal and on-the-job. Which means convincing experienced workers to play ball. And finding and paying someone to manage it all, not to mention mentoring. While trade unions help, they don't address builders' biggest constraint: paying workers who aren't going to be productive for months, and maybe much longer. Also, unions are disincentivized to increase the supply of new workers, which could depress the wages of their members. It turns out homebuilders are singularly ill-suited to make these investments. My friend Bob Lerman, co-founder of Apprenticeships for America, alerted me to a new paper from the National Bureau of Economic Research which surfaces a remarkable fact: 40% of single-family housing employees work in firms with fewer than five employees and 63% work for companies with fewer than 10 employees. This means two things: first, an opportunity for recent business school grads to roll them up; second, a constitutional inability to invest in earn-and-learn pathways. Homebuilding may be America's last mom-and-pop business. The NBER paper identifies the culprit: local land-use regulation and permitting. Each city and town sets its own ground rules (and its own revenue-generating permitting fees), making it prohibitive for builders to undertake bigger projects or operate across jurisdictions. Many communities require builders to engage in outreach to neighbors to gain approval, or at least quiet critics likely to attend a planning meeting. Whereas communities organize to protest big construction projects orchestrated by big, bad, out-of-town developers, critics are less likely to show up for small-scale projects or go against small, local builders. The result is small projects built by small builders. Various studies have documented a decline in productivity in the building sector since 1970 – a dramatic reversal from the prior 30 years. Not coincidentally, 1970 marked the beginning of the local land-use regulation boom. The paper finds a strong correlation between areas with stricter, iconoclastic rules and smaller, less productive builders. Smaller builders are less productive because they don't invest in new technologies or new and more efficient building methods. And they don't invest in apprenticeships, internships, and other earn-and-learn pathways. Which means they don't have enough workers. Which means they end up spending more on labor for each project. Hence a recent Wall Street Journal article on Father Judge, a Catholic high school in Philadelphia where companies are actively recruiting students into entry-level jobs in the trades. These include the local transit system, submarine manufacturers, an operator of nuclear power plants, a defense contractor, and a chain of auto body shops. But nary a homebuilder. Why is America capable of manufacturing pretty much everything except homes? Because the vast majority of homes are custom-built on site – 'stick-built'– vs. mass produced or prefabricated. Prefabricated homes are built in factories, then transported to the site and assembled. More than a century after the assembly line revolutionized manufacturing, large manufacturers of durable and consumer goods capture 80%+ market share; in housing, it's only 13%. One reason is lack of competition: shipping costs make it prohibitive to offshore homebuilding. But domestic prefabrication – bringing the assembly line to housing – is possible and reduces labor costs. Canada, which is experiencing an even greater housing shortage, is making a big bet on prefabrication. The newly elected Liberal government has promised $25B in loans to prefab housing manufacturers. If the U.S. made a comparable investment, millions of new houses and apartments would be prefabricated and builders with sufficient scale to invest in factories would be able to invest in apprenticeships, internships, and other earn-and-learn pathways rather than putting together a crew from whomever happens to be standing around the Home Depot parking lot. It's not only homes. Lack of earn-and-learn pathways and the resulting labor crunch also explain why construction costs for roads and bridges have gotten out of control. And why America can't seem to build big things like subway line extensions. And don't get me started on the tram at Los Angeles International Airport: under construction for over six years, perhaps because I've never seen anyone working on it. Or high-speed rail in California, which depresses everyone who looks at it. But I'd trade public infrastructure for affordable homes. Out-of-control construction costs aren't only limiting the number of units being built, but also what's getting built. Because less expensive units produce less profit, homebuilders have shifted to higher cost housing rather than units low- and middle-income families can afford. This luxury shift also creates a vicious circle as custom features and advanced technology require specialized workers, further fueling the cost of labor. The result is even less affordable housing. Which makes life even harder for those struggling with unemployment or underemployment and lack of career pathways – the very thing that's making homebuilding more expensive. The shortage of earn-and-learn pathways stems from America's unique college-for-all approach to career launch, a trend that also dates from around 1970, and a trend that's led to taxpayers investing $1,000 in classroom-based, tuition-based, debt-based career launch infrastructure for every $1 invested in work-based, earn-and-learn career launch infrastructure. This imbalance is particularly problematic for the trades, which are better learned on the job than in a classroom. But the overall track record isn't great: Just like college-for-all – a policy set by elites who went to college decades ago – local land-use and permitting rules are set by people who bought custom, on-site, stick-built homes decades ago. And just like college-for-all is no longer affordable for all, stick-built homes are no longer affordable for all. Particularly for those in greatest need of education and housing. Both education and housing have become games rigged in favor of wealthy incumbents – older Americans who've already checked both boxes – while young Americans are left behind. While holding out hope for reform on both fronts at all levels of government, one way to kill two birds with one stone is to scale investment in earn-and-learn pathways to careers in the building trades. Builders should be incentivized to recruit students from vocational high schools like Father Judge, but also any grad with an interest in a trade apprenticeship regardless of prior skills or experience. Because that's what apprenticeship is for. We need affordable new homes. But to build affordable new homes, we need to scale investment in earn-and-learn pathways to flood the (construction) zone with new tradespeople. We can't have one without the other. If housing costs too much, we need to continue to chip away at NIMBY local land-use rules while beginning to cover the cost of trade apprentice training in full and subsidizing the wages of apprentices until they become productive. And the funding should be formula-based and simple for a small builder to tap. Perhaps some underemployed members of Gen Z will build memes about this. Because they're clearly not building homes.
