Odd Lots · Monday, September 28, 2026
Bill McBride and Zach Lazzari suggest that Los Angeles's lower density compared to New York allows for more affordable rental deals, enabling independent businesses and creative individuals to survive and focus on their craft. This contrasts with New York's high density, which drives up rents and makes it harder to pay for living expenses.
“You'd have a really exciting neighborhood. Pop up in Silver Lake or Echo Park or Highland Park. And then whenever scaffolding would go up for a new building, there's generally a, oh, oh no, what's that going to be? And that's not the reaction that you should have when a new building is being built.”
“In New York, you have really high density and therefore you're going to have high rent.”
“For a particular location. Here we're really spread out.”
“So you have people who are just dedicated to their craft who can survive in LA and focus on their art Versus in New York, it's a lot more difficult to be able to focus on your craft while being able to pay rent.”