Those who passed Micro-Economics 101 in college know that, other factors being equal, adding more buyers for the same goods in a free market increases the price of those goods. Simple. So, how is it that when those goods are homes to buy or rent and the added buyers are newcomers from abroad, legal or illegal, so many people on the left find that so hard to imderstand?
Last night in his debate with Tim Walz, JD Vance said this: “Twenty-five million illegal aliens competing with Americans for scarce homes is one of the most significant drivers of home prices in the country.”
This sent shock waves through the Left, which apparently consists of people who did not pass Micro or else just took Third-World Women’s Studies instead. One who is apparently challenged by the concept of the demand curve is CBS News moderator Margaret Brennan, who asked Vance, “Senator … I’d like for you to clarify. There are many contributing factors to high housing costs. What evidence do you have that migrants are part of this problem?”
Vance answered authoritatively and after the debate posted links to his evidence, much of it straight from establishment sources. He posted links to reports from the Federal Reserve, the Congressional Budget Office, and the Journal of Housing Economics, each of them confirming his statement.
Today, the libertarian Cato Institute, which has argued for open borders consistently, also admitted that Vance was right. Alex Nowrasteh wrote:
Vance is correct in saying that immigrants increase the price of houses. The intersection of supply and demand determines housing prices, like all prices. When housing supply curves are upward-sloping, increased demand from immigrants will increase housing prices. Immigrants are people who want roofs over their heads, after all.
Maybe Ms. Brennan can retrieve her own head from where she’s misplaced it and get the picture. But don’t count on it.
For more, see Breitbart News.