Will Mamdani's Left YIMBYism Work?

Summary

The struggle over how to make housing more affordable has riven the American left for several years now. The fight roughly divides into two camps. One, known as the YIMBYs (yes in my backyard) or Abundance movement (taken from the best-selling Ezra Klein and Derek Thompson book), argues for the market as the ultimate solution. Build enough housing and prices will fall. Prominent Abundance pundits like Matt Yglesias are skeptical of rent regulation and tough tenant protections. Anything that is seen as strangling the housing supply the private sector provides must be opposed.