by San Francisco was once known for its high housing prices. Before the new crown, the urban area was the city’s golden goose. Seventy percent of jobs come from companies that rent offices in urban areas, and they generate nearly eighty percent of economic output. But after the new crown, not all corporate employees came back. In the first quarter of 2023, the San Francisco office vacancy rate hit a record high of 29.4%. This trend will not end in a short time. Nearly 30 percent of new job creation in San Francisco was hybrid or remote work, the highest rate among the 50 largest U.S. cities. Employees are working from home instead of commuting or driving to the city, which means a huge reduction in tax revenue. The San Francisco government estimates a deficit of $728 million over the next two fiscal years. what to do? One solution is to convert vacant office buildings into residential buildings, hoping that employees will live in urban areas rather than in the suburbs as much as possible.
