All the studies show that the majority of Americans of child rearing age want a detached home and when they become too expensive, such as in Los Angeles, the family Millennials and Gen Zer's move away is such large numbers that employees follow, then the Fortune 500 follow, and the state loses Congressional representation. Rather than decide that they want smaller places like apartments, families are repurposing the various rooms and making additions to older craftsmen homes to add family room, open floor plan, master suites (primary suites0, offices, and computer rooms.
In Los Angeles the excess of units is among apartments and not among single family homes. Apartment do not allow for equity so that when a couple reaches 65, they have nothing except an eternity of rising rents as their income decreases. The major results of densification have been (1) massive homelessness as poor people's home are destroyed for the new complexes which stand most empty (but great for money laundering) (2) rising housing costs which have driven out the core of Los Angeles next middle class, deprived the school district of income which is based on pupil attendance, reduced our tax base, and turn LA into a dependent based population and not a creative one -- those people are dying out as they are old or they have left because densification has made the city have haven for criminals. LA problems can be summed up into two words, excessive densification.
There's another comparison between the auto industry and suburbs I've wondered about. Right now legacy automakers are losing sales worldwide to Chinese EVs. The UAW doesn't like to deal with foreign competition or technological disruption. Maybe auto workers would be better off in the construction industry? Maybe the auto industry's metal and glass suppliers could supply the construction industry? And Americans moving from exurbs to cities and giving up their cars in the process could be a kind of scorched earth strategy. Sales of gasoline cars would go down but so would the ceiling on potential sales of Chinese EVs in the US market even if the tariffs went away.
All the studies show that the majority of Americans of child rearing age want a detached home and when they become too expensive, such as in Los Angeles, the family Millennials and Gen Zer's move away is such large numbers that employees follow, then the Fortune 500 follow, and the state loses Congressional representation. Rather than decide that they want smaller places like apartments, families are repurposing the various rooms and making additions to older craftsmen homes to add family room, open floor plan, master suites (primary suites0, offices, and computer rooms.
In Los Angeles the excess of units is among apartments and not among single family homes. Apartment do not allow for equity so that when a couple reaches 65, they have nothing except an eternity of rising rents as their income decreases. The major results of densification have been (1) massive homelessness as poor people's home are destroyed for the new complexes which stand most empty (but great for money laundering) (2) rising housing costs which have driven out the core of Los Angeles next middle class, deprived the school district of income which is based on pupil attendance, reduced our tax base, and turn LA into a dependent based population and not a creative one -- those people are dying out as they are old or they have left because densification has made the city have haven for criminals. LA problems can be summed up into two words, excessive densification.
Excellent! Great insights!
There's another comparison between the auto industry and suburbs I've wondered about. Right now legacy automakers are losing sales worldwide to Chinese EVs. The UAW doesn't like to deal with foreign competition or technological disruption. Maybe auto workers would be better off in the construction industry? Maybe the auto industry's metal and glass suppliers could supply the construction industry? And Americans moving from exurbs to cities and giving up their cars in the process could be a kind of scorched earth strategy. Sales of gasoline cars would go down but so would the ceiling on potential sales of Chinese EVs in the US market even if the tariffs went away.