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Something no one ever talks about with UBI is how the effects will be eliminated in a few years. The very things poorer people would buy from it would get more expensive by the UBI proportion, it will just be inflated away.

Someone brings this up in literally every UBI discussion ever.



Because it makes sense. Why wouldn't rent seekers - both landlords and more abstract rent-seekers - just raise prices?

Maybe competition takes care of that? But that doesn't seem to work very well in the current housing market.


> Why wouldn't rent seekers - both landlords and more abstract rent-seekers - just raise prices?

Why doesn't every change in income level and distribution just change price levels of goods demanded by different groups resulting in no change in relative buying power? Several reasons:

(1) No one has access to idealized monopoly rents, and

(2) (relative to redistribution) Very few goods are demanded only at one point in the income distribution.


Housing is the largest issue here, and probably needs gov correction.

OTOH, basic goods becoming more expensive means producing them becomes more attractive which leads to lower prices or better wages (because less people will be willing to work shit jobs with crap pay like in the meat industry today).


Housing is rarely the issue on its own, because it is what it is due to related factor. Why live in one particular location? That's the motivator towards housing, and it relates many different things.

e.g in my city, I am positive the rent is high because of issues with transport i.e. poor transport means you need to live closer to work for a reasonable commute.


UBI is no more susceptible to this than a minimum wage raise, for example.

Basic rent controls and other affordable housing initiatives are usually advocated by UBI proponents. There's no reason we can't have both.


Maybe there should be a word for, the most important "crux", flaw, or impediment to an issue that isn't discussed in proportion to it's importance.

Discussing the benefit of UBI is wasted time before you fix the market-adjustment problem.




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