Honestly when I see “tech millionaire” and “altruism” in the same article, I expect to seese seriously ghoulish shit.
I still have concerns around the long-term outcome - the land is ostensibly still privately held, and I assume the homes are as well. I’d like to
Honestly when I see “tech millionaire” and “altruism” in the same article, I don’t expect to see someone actually using their wealth to do something decent.
Imagine if the public sector did this and didn’t limit it to a single development.
We could even build bigger-than-tiny sized units. Maybe include additional amenities like schools and health clinics and food malls in the immediate vicinity. Throw in a rail stop so people can get to the metro center easily. You know… actual urban development.
No idea where we could get money for that, though. Maybe if Canada didn’t exempt 50% of capital gains income from taxation for some reason… But no, that would never work.
Feels like now is the best time for other nations to have low capital gains taxes. No?
This is good, but if we address this at a systemic level, we don’t need to put people in tiny low-density homes unconnected to anything for it to be affordable.
Presumably local governments have some mechanism for when they know a house costs X materials and Y labor, and they see new construction costing significantly more than that.
The result is detached homes@avg 75USD/sqft and apartments@55/sqft. With current interest rates of 6.768%, you’d get ~400 sqft homes with a $200/mo 30 year mortgage at those prices, 600sqft if interest rates were 3%.
Yup. A group local to me put up around 20 tiny homes with a grant from the city. With the cost of upkeep, it would have been cheaper for the city to pay for 20 hotel rooms. Which wouldn’t have had any fewer amenities than the tiny homes they made.
There’s some benefit to them as backyard “mother in law houses” or for a cabin in the woods. For solving homelessness, no, there are better options.
I get that he enjoys staying involved with the project including providing/helping services for the community, but this probably doesn’t need to use the “30% of income rent” crutch that is typical. Would be less time consuming to sell homes at cost, perhaps partner with bank to guarantee mortgages at low rates, let the community be a self managed HOA. Can make unlimited communities that way instead of tying up all your/his time into this one.
That may be fine at first, but the price of those houses will skyrocket every time they’re sold until they reach the current market prices again. By only renting them, he can ensure the price stays artificially low.
If community is awesome, then prices can go up. All the better reason to buy with arranged financing if needed. Ultra generous rent control benefits can prevent you from improving your life if it means moving.
Wouldn’t the prices going up immediately negate the entire reason the community exists?
Helping the most people comes with building the most homes. The awesome part of what he’s doing is foregoing profit. Helps even more people. But keeping “self financed” production up, without micromanaging communities, is likely the best use of his time. The best way to help people isn’t necessarily by gatekeeping for only those who deserve the most help, and reducing the total help provided, bc of the gatekeeping getting in the way.
Go and implement your way of doing it then, get back to us. Otherwise, STFU from your warm home with, I assume, little experience of the concerns of homeless people. Even if I’m wrong on that last part, please just be happy about something positive going on without sticking your keyboard nose in it.
Go outside and talk to someone. Maybe a homeless person.
Remember, theres a gigantic difference between the wealth of a billionaire and the wealth of a millionaire. For one thing, its possible to make a million without harming others, a BILLION though, you HAVE to sacrifice others to achieve.
On paper, sure. But I might argue that the process of accruing paper wealth as a backstop against misfortune and a reserve during retirement is inherently deleterious - forcing people to forego quality of life in the immediate term as a hedge against the future. This is a highly inefficient process for individuals to manage - who carry the whole cost of an incidental risk/exceptionally long life. And it is the whole reason public pensions and public insurance came to exist.
That’s before you get into the moral hazard of certain professions and fortunate individuals being predisposed towards retirement, while others work right up until their dying days.
The difference between a million dollars and a billion dollars is about a billion dollars
While the guy happened to manage to acquire almost $400 million by selling his company, it seems that he’s really trying to do some good with that, quite frankly, ridiculous amount of money.
Also it seems that his employees were compensated somewhat above market rate while he owned the company.
Not exactly a dragon of his own making, we shall observe his career with great interest to see if he follows what seems to be his chosen path, as of now.
“The word ‘philanthropy’ is often interpreted as someone who gives money,” he told the alumni magazine.
“But the Greek roots of the word ‘philos’ and ‘anthropos’ mean to love humans. What I have discovered is spending money is the easy thing, spending yourself is the hard thing. The 12 Neighbours project is how I can best spend myself.”yl
I’m not crying, you’re crying… Sniff
I also liked this:
“We have people who have been run over by trauma, by substance abuse, by all of these things,” LeBrun told Macleans. “It’s about excavating that person, buried under their circumstances, little by little.”
Seems like a decent dude.
I like this part as well:
“I won the parent lottery, the education lottery, the country lottery,” LeBrun told Macleans. “It would be arrogant to say every piece of my ‘success’ was earned, when so much of it was received.”
Some rocker tried to do that in LA and they arrested him and kicked out all the homeless.
Elon Musk would never lol. He could do so much good with his money but he just chooses not to. Has he built a library? A park? A school? Literally anything?
Since you asked according to Wikipedia the Musk Foundation has given $50 million to st Judes, although Musk and his foundation have been criticized for their low payouts.
Didn’t you know empathy is a sin and weakness…
Can’t believe he said that shit.
Something something he could’ve ended world hunger, but chose not to.
He twisted and parroted the words of someone else. Fucker’s absolutely incapable of original thought or actual creation
He’s a billionaire. Id be surprised if he said otherwise.
If he said that, he needs to be ground into a fine paste, eaten, and then shit out because that’s some garbage-tier humaning.
Eat this guy last
He can sit on my side of the table if he keeps this up
Very smart to put solar panels on each unit. I hope the residents will be allowed to plant some flowers, bushes, and trees to brighten up the area.
This is in my town. They are allowed and encouraged to do so. Their place is THEIR place, it fosters a sense of community and ownership of the community.
This project really kicks ass and it’s making waves. I know the guy is a millionaire, but I’ve listened to a few interviews and his heart is at the right place. He genuinely cares and is being pragmatic about it.
I wish I could say the same for the billionaires of this province. Looking at you, Irving shitbags.
It’s actually not as crazy being a tech millionaire nowadays since so many people build a great service and then just have it bought up by the competition.
It said right in the article Salesforce bought his product in 2011 and thats what made him a millionaire. Pretty good way to use that life changing money for the better of others and not just himself.
A million dollars ain’t what it used to be. Won’t even buy a house in many cities anymore.
A million will get you a home in just about any city. Whether it’s a really nice one or not is the question.
This is fine, but millionaires won’t save us
This could be pointed to as a successful test case to get the gov off it’s ass and implement this at a macro level.
You are correct millionaires will not save us, however we should reward behavior we want to see. Lest we get more billionaires who are a net drag on society.
How though. Anti taxers would point out that it should be an 8 story concrete apartment building for maximum return of government investment, but no increase in taxes, any concerned official is left fighting politically for leftover funds to slowly build up in an account to initiate the project, and then they loose an election and the next guy uses it on fancy jewlery for his mistress.
Even just getting one building off the ground and they’ll be eviscerated for not using economies of scale. Building ten at the same time and a slight cost overrun which always happens is multiplied by ten.
Sorry for my pessimistic rant.
I really don’t like that you got downvoted so much for this. You are not wrong, that is the anti-taxer take, and your exposure to those who might not be aware contributes to the discussion in a meaningful way. I don’t know or care if you’re anti-tax I just know you brought up well thought-out points relevant to the conversation and I don’t like seeing the upside down vote count.
Thank you
Sure, but let’s pretend this one hasn’t done significantly more than others.
He did actually save those homeless people.
Absolutely, but it is food seeing some people who actually use their money for something good.
They could, but they won’t.
Maybe if they all teamed up and were organized to do so. But a tiny handful of billionaires control as much wealth as the millionaires. It’s much harder for a class to voluntarily do good than for a small handful of people. That’s why society needs to step in, tax them, and distribute to projects as needed.
Why can’t other people be more like this? Go Marcel!
Impressive, it’s even a walkable place seen that it is a mixed use neighborhood with commercial buildings too
