Moving & Relocation: The End Of Exurbanism

Progressive blogs such as Firedoglake and the American Prospect's TAPPED are tackling the issues of explosive population growth, the failures of mass transit, and the need for better urban planning and development in the wake of the foreclosure tidal wave and the collapse of the subprime market.

This is nothing but a good thing to me. With gas prices creeping above $3 a gallon again, consumer and food prices rising in tandem, and thousands (if not millions) of Americans facing the dark side of excessive sprawl, McMansionitis, and developers' push to build at any cost, the time is ripe for a major change in how we view home ownership.

The "housing nightmare" will push many people out of their shitbox homes in the middle of nowhere and force them to not only live with less, but to reassess what a lifestyle spent in pursuit of conspicuous consumption really means. Is it worth it to have that 3,000 square-foot palace when you can't afford to pay your bills, and your family eats Ramen noodles and sleeps on mattresses just to make ends meet?

We need housing close to the city centers that supports the people who keep our cities running--doctors, policemen, nurses, firemen, janitors, etc. Urban planning, smart use, and the like are absolutely no guarantee of solving the problems we face. But we need to look at housing and home ownership in a different way if we're going to escape the endless cycle of boom and bust that ensnares far too many and crushes their dreams.

Posted at March 18, 2007 07:15 PM

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Progressive blogs such as Firedoglake and the American Prospect's TAPPED are tackling the issues of explosive population growth, the failures of mass transit, and the need for better urban planning and development in the wake of the foreclosure tidal wave and the collapse of the subprime market. This is nothing but a good thing to me. With gas prices creeping above $3 a gallon again, consumer and food prices rising in tandem, and thousands (if not millions) of Americans facing the dark side of excessive sprawl, McMansionitis, and developers' push to build at any cost, the time is ripe for a major change in how we view home ownership. The "housing nightmare" will push many people out of their shitbox homes in the middle of nowhere and force them to not only live with less, but to reassess what a lifestyle spent in pursuit of conspicuous consumption really means. Is it worth it to have that 3,000 square-foot palace when you can't afford to pay your bills, and your family eats Ramen noodles and sleeps on mattresses just to make ends meet? We need housing close to the city centers that supports the people who keep our cities running--doctors, policemen, nurses, firemen, janitors, etc. Urban planning, smart use, and the like are absolutely no guarantee of solving the problems we face. But we need to look at housing and home ownership in a different way if we're going to escape the endless cycle of boom and bust that ensnares far too many and crushes their dreams.