If you’re wondering how a supply-sider in favor of low taxes and deregulation came to support a new, onerous tax on property owners, the answer is found in John Marshall’s famous maxim, “The power to tax is the power to destroy”.
While often taken as a warning Marshall’s words can also be taken as advice. You’ll see the term “sin tax” used for taxes on cigarettes, alcohol and guns while taxes on other things may carry similar financial penalties, few come with the public approval of taxes for a cause.
If people like the Carbon Tax that punishes polluters to fund green energy and the Sugar-Tax that fights tooth decay and funds obesity programs, they’ll really love a Vacancy Tax that punishes retail and residential Vacancy and funds programs that support sustainable small business Occupancy. It sounds like a joke because I’m being so honest about it. Let’s fight Vacancy the old fashion way: Taxes.
The Supply of spaces far outweigh the Demand at current prices, but not of overall demand. It seems unnatural but all current incentives make letting buildings sit empty and appreciate in value a wise fiscal move. Let’s change those incentives. A Vacancy Tax would create downward pressure on real estate prices, making it incumbent upon the landlord to make prices match the tenant’s ability to make money in their building.
In the coming issues of this paper we’ll be exploring ideas for taking advantage of the situation we find ourselves all in. The office is changing but it’s not going away. Pioneer Square was built to support everything from industry and retail to residential and restaurants. Landlords need to stop waiting for big companies to come back and make room for all the people with no place to work and the new lifestyles that come with that.
-Pioneer Post – Issue 1, Page 4 – Spring 2023
