At the intersection of rue Eugene Sue and rue Simart in Paris is a collection of mid-rise buildings that were constructed during Haussmann's renovation of Paris in the second half of the 19th century. They were intended to house some 10,000 workers.

Here's an aerial image of that intersection from Google Maps:

I saw in the news recently that Hong Kong just set a new world record for the most expensive parking spot. I think it also held the previous record.

Last month somebody paid HKD 6 million for a single stall in the Ultima apartment complex in Kowloon. That’s about USD 765,000 or CAD 1 million based on today’s rates. And the spot is 16.4 feet x 8.2 feet, so that works out to about CAD 7,436 per square foot. 

What is clear is that supply is not keeping up with demand. Here is the stat from a recent Toronto Star article:

The number of parking spaces grew just 9.5 per cent to 743,000 from 2006 through 2016 [in Hong Kong], while the private car population surged 49 per cent to 536,025, according to a report by the city’s Transport Department.

There are a number market forces which are undoubtedly bringing down the ratio of parking stalls to housing units. That same phenomenon is also pretty clear here in Toronto. But it is interesting to note the continued growth in private cars.

At the intersection of rue Eugene Sue and rue Simart in Paris is a collection of mid-rise buildings that were constructed during Haussmann's renovation of Paris in the second half of the 19th century. They were intended to house some 10,000 workers.

Here's an aerial image of that intersection from Google Maps:

I saw in the news recently that Hong Kong just set a new world record for the most expensive parking spot. I think it also held the previous record.

Last month somebody paid HKD 6 million for a single stall in the Ultima apartment complex in Kowloon. That’s about USD 765,000 or CAD 1 million based on today’s rates. And the spot is 16.4 feet x 8.2 feet, so that works out to about CAD 7,436 per square foot. 

What is clear is that supply is not keeping up with demand. Here is the stat from a recent Toronto Star article:

The number of parking spaces grew just 9.5 per cent to 743,000 from 2006 through 2016 [in Hong Kong], while the private car population surged 49 per cent to 536,025, according to a report by the city’s Transport Department.

There are a number market forces which are undoubtedly bringing down the ratio of parking stalls to housing units. That same phenomenon is also pretty clear here in Toronto. But it is interesting to note the continued growth in private cars.