Same as it ever was…

Charley over at The Blue Mass. Group wrote an article that horrified me, as a new homeowner.

Here’s an article from the NYTimes — front page of the Home and Garden section, no less — which discusses families (pretty darned affluent ones at that) having made lots of paper equity on their homes in the last few years, and no place to spend it when they outgrow or out-desire their current places. So maybe they make 100% profit on their investment, but find they still can’t afford an upgrade within their geographical areas.

YIKES.

Otherwise we may see the “Manhattanization” of entire markets like here and San Francisco, where folks pay higher and higher prices and hold lower and lower expectations because, well, they just have to live there. (After all, that’s me.)

You’re not alone, Charley.

After spending my entire life living with relatively easy access to a cool cities, I can’t imagine NOT being able to say, hop on the T and be around a ton of fantastic restaurants and entertainment options. But if things like this keep happening to cities like Manattan, San Francisco, and Boston…where would that leave people like Matt and I? We’ll end up living either faaarrr out in Metrowest (although, frankly, it could be worse) or to the boondocks of New Hampshire or something — yet still commute to Greater Boston. Or live right outside of Boston, as we do now, but never be able to get a bigger/better/nicer home.

Mama mia. These major cities are making it so that people who works their butts off (and make a decent living by national standards) will no longer be able to afford to live where they wish to. And it makes it even more difficult for people who work jobs in urban areas like waiting on tables, janitorial work, etc to continue living here.

Getrification has its ups and downs…one pro is that it makes streets safer and cleaner. But there are endless cons…like the fact that soon everyone will have to be a millionare to purchase property in a cool city.

Check out this interesting, albeit depressing, article re: the housing bubble & riskiest places to purchase a home.

Filed under Greater Boston (General), Local & State Politics, Local News, New England |