If the price of the house rises faster than inflation, it is a good investment. However, rising faster than inflation also means that they become proportionally less affordable over time. You cannot have both affordable housing and high returns from housing
> You cannot have both affordable housing and high returns from housing
Sure, you can, but only if real estate in established neighborhoods is more expensive than housing in new neighborhoods, which isn't hyperlocally sustainable but might be sustainable over a broader region.
You sort of can, but it requires increasing density (so per square foot stays similar but those with low incomes can still afford a small place) or older neighborhoods becoming more expensive than newer neighborhoods (happens all the time).
Increasing density likely implies displacing the people presently in the expensive neighborhood for construction. In the U.S. anyway, that’s easier said than done. So that’s definitely a theoretical solution but I’m not sure how practical it is.
Also, inflation causes the value of debt to decrease over time. (Wages are sticky, but when they catch up, inflation causes debt to go down as the value of currency decreases.)
