The Land Value Tax as a Solution for Housing Affordability

A Vox explainer digs into one of the esoteric ideas of planning theory: a land tax.

2 minute read

March 7, 2022, 11:00 AM PST

By James Brasuell @CasualBrasuell


High-Rise Development

Roschetzky Photography / Shutterstock

Jerusalem Demsas writes to explain the potential of a land tax to potentially solve a number of fiscal problems while also creating an incentive for high value development.

Henry George first proposed a land tax in Progress and Poverty (1879), and the idea has hung around more esoteric economic discussions to this day—according to Demsas, the phrase "A land value tax would solve this" appears regularly on Twitter.

While proponents of a land value tax point to numerous fiscal challenges that could be solved with a land value tax, Demsas says one the idea offers a potentially straightforward solution for one of the country's biggest challenges: the cost of housing and the resulting lack of affordable options.

That crisis is caused, in part, by the failure to appropriately use valuable in-demand land for its best purpose. Millions of people want to live in New York City, Los Angeles, Washington, DC, or Seattle, but local tax regimes actually punish people for investing in their property. When people improve their property — either by adding a new room or building an entirely new structure like a multi-story apartment building, they’ll pay higher property taxes.

According to the article, the land tax isn't just an urban solution: small cities with vacant lots could also benefit from balancing the system of incentives. In both urban and more rural settings, according to the theory, under a land value tax, "property owners would be clamoring to be allowed to develop their land more intensely — leading to more homes being built."

The article includes a lot more explanation and links to the most prominent articles written on the subject in the past decade.

Friday, March 4, 2022 in Tax the Land

portrait of professional woman

I love the variety of courses, many practical, and all richly illustrated. They have inspired many ideas that I've applied in practice, and in my own teaching. Mary G., Urban Planner

I love the variety of courses, many practical, and all richly illustrated. They have inspired many ideas that I've applied in practice, and in my own teaching.

Mary G., Urban Planner

Get top-rated, practical training

Close-up of "Apartment for rent" sign in red text on black background in front of blurred building

Trump Administration Could Effectively End Housing Voucher Program

Federal officials are eyeing major cuts to the Section 8 program that helps millions of low-income households pay rent.

April 21, 2025 - Housing Wire

Logo for Planetizen Federal Action Tracker with black and white image of U.S. Capitol with water ripple overlay.

Planetizen Federal Action Tracker

A weekly monitor of how Trump’s orders and actions are impacting planners and planning in America.

April 23, 2025 - Diana Ionescu

Ken Jennings stands in front of Snohomish County Community Transit bus.

Ken Jennings Launches Transit Web Series

The Jeopardy champ wants you to ride public transit.

April 20, 2025 - Streetsblog USA

White Waymo self-driving car with camera and sensors mounted to front driver's side mirror.

USDOT Waters Down Self-Driving Car Regulations

The agency is reducing reporting requirements for autonomous vehicles and cars with self-driving features, prompting concern among safety advocates who say transparency is essential to the safe deployment of AV technology.

15 minutes ago - Wired

Bronze or metal Native American mask sculpture in park in Minnehaha County.

‘Minnesota Nice’ Isn’t so Nice When You Can’t Find a Place to Live

The Economic Development and Housing Challenge Program can help address the scourge of homelessness among Indigenous people.

1 hour ago - Minnesota Reformer

Children and adults biking and hanging out on an Open Street closed to vehicles in New York City during the Covid-19 pandemic.

NYC Open Streets Organizers Call for City Support

The number of open streets projects has dropped year after year as volunteer groups struggle to fund and staff them.

2 hours ago - StreetsBlog NYC