Should the government penalize owners of empty homes with a special tax?

With a severe housing shortage driving rents to record highs, census data indicates there are over 160,000 vacant dwellings across the state that could be housing families. Proponents argue that a steep tax on emptiness is the fastest way to unlock this existing supply and discourage the use of housing as a speculative asset. Opponents argue that many properties are empty for legitimate reasons—such as complex probate disputes, lack of funds for refurbishment, or the owner being in long-term care—and that penalizing them violates property rights while distracting from the state's failure to build social housing.