"Why America’s Young And Restless Will Abandon Cities For Suburbs"

[soonerguru]

Portland has become the go to place for young professionals abandoning NYC. A lot of lawyers are heading that way. Jobs have disappeared in the Big Apple and within the last couple of years, Oregon opened up its reciprocity to allow certain groups of lawyers licensed in NY to be admitted to the Oregon bar without having to take the bar. Prior to that, it was one of the few states that still made lawyers re-take the bar - no small impediment to moving.

It makes perfect sense that city dwellers leaving NYC would be apt to look for a place that is comfortable to them.

That is interesting. I didn't know that. One thing I have been aware of is very high unemployment in the Portland area. Not sure if that's turned around of late.

[PennyQuilts]

That is interesting. I didn't know that. One thing I have been aware of is very high unemployment in the Portland area. Not sure if that's turned around of late.

I know quite a few NYC lawyers with feelers out in case something opens up in Portland.

[Spartan]

Yup, this is interesting. Plenty of folks can get walkable neighborhoods from a small town as easily as they can from the urban core - only cheaper, less crime and often with better schools.

Your crusade against urbanism is noted.

[krisb]

Your crusade against urbanism is noted.

Many new urbanist communities are strikingly similar to small town main streets. Millions of people and high rises are not necessary to create the urban form. All you need is a continuous stock of mid-rise buildings with a mix of uses and a modest population density.

[Spartan]

The man speaks the truth.

[FRISKY]

It will be interesting to see how this works out.

DETROIT (WWJ) – Employees of five downtown-based companies are being given financial incentives to live where they work.

DTE Energy’s Paul Hillegonds says the trend is already there, with a number of young professionals and creative types hanging their hat in downtown Detroit lofts and apartments.

Now, the plan is to create greater density in surrounding neighborhoods, but not just for the younger set.

“We have a number of probably empty-nesters, but also a number of retirements ahead with younger people who will be coming to work in Detroit at DTE headquarters,” Hillegonds told WWJ Newsradio 950′s Ron Dewey.

“And I think we’re going to see growing interest in living in Detroit,” he said.

Blue cross Blue Shield President CEO Dan Leopp thinks the program will work.

“Our first application came in via email at 10 a.m., and we’ve already gotten about a half-a-dozen phone calls. So, I think clearly I believe the demand is there,” Leopp said.

Blue Cross is offering incentives to their 16,000 employees to buy or rent downtown and surrounding neighborhoods. It’s a seed program to attract more development and more people to the city.

In the five-year, $4 million “Live Downtown” program, first-time home buyers will get a $20,000 forgivable loan. Renters will get a $2,500 first year allowance, and $1,000 the following year. Employees who already own a home in the city will be given up to a $5,000 grant for exterior improvements.

“Everything is market, and if you’ve got bodies and you’ve got volume, it’s gonna attract business, it’s gonna attract retail. You’ve gotta have that density and that’s what we’re trying to do,” Loepp said.

Other companies taking part are Compuware, Quicken Loans and Strategic Staffing Solutions.

http://detroit.cbslocal.com/2011/07/...live-downtown/

[Questor]

Much of the urban infill in Austin is "new", some are quality and others are crap, just because something is "new" doesn't mean they are quality. My wife manages some rental condo properties, the "new" units are a maintenance nightmare, there is something always breaking at them and they were new, ground up construction.

All definitely true. I once lived in some old condos build in the 1920s, and the thing that struck me about the place was that the closets were absolutely tiny. Guess people of that era didn't have that many clothes. Also, the rooms were all very compartmentalized and walled off from one another. When I say that a lot of people including myself prefer "new," at least with me it isn't to be free from maintenance but rather it is a desire to live somewhere with modern amenities and aesthetics... big closets, master baths, open architectures in the living and kitchen spaces, space for modern appliances, and so on. I'm pretty sure any old place could have its interior gutted and redesigned to make all of this so, but I guess I just don't see how that would be economically realistic in places like Oklahoma and Texas.

I really do love old neighborhoods though, especially ones with unique architecture and lots of big old trees.

[bluedogok]

All definitely true. I once lived in some old condos build in the 1920s, and the thing that struck me about the place was that the closets were absolutely tiny. Guess people of that era didn't have that many clothes. Also, the rooms were all very compartmentalized and walled off from one another. When I say that a lot of people including myself prefer "new," at least with me it isn't to be free from maintenance but rather it is a desire to live somewhere with modern amenities and aesthetics... big closets, master baths, open architectures in the living and kitchen spaces, space for modern appliances, and so on. I'm pretty sure any old place could have its interior gutted and redesigned to make all of this so, but I guess I just don't see how that would be economically realistic in places like Oklahoma and Texas.

I really do love old neighborhoods though, especially ones with unique architecture and lots of big old trees.

I was mainly addressing how some want "new" for the sake of having new when in most cases most of the older properties are better constructed and many could be made into more updated spaces. There is a lot of that being done in the near downtown areas of Austin, the rents/home prices can certainly justify it. I looked at one a few years ago that was redone in the Travis Heights area just south of downtown and they were asking $975,000, there were 800sf bungalows there in the 200's but most of that was land value, for those the houses would be demolished with new, bigger houses built. Most near downtown areas can be renovated/updated or built with new infill and still be profitable.

Some of it is just the trends at the time of construction, taller ceilings were used extensively until the post war era, you had lots of windows and deep shaded porches for passive cooling since no one had air conditioning. People lived in much smaller spaces as well, you would have a family of six living in a 1,000 sf home, yesterday I looked at an 1,200 sf house that would be just for one person. Since the economy was not as consumption based people just didn't have as much stuff so less storage was needed. Bathrooms and bedrooms were really just for the tasks intended, families spent time together in the family room or outside. My great-grandfathers house in Heritage Hills was a pretty open plan on the ground floor, my grandparents house near 22nd & Classen was very open in the front part of the house, in the post war era and the explosion of the suburban tract home by builders changed the style of homes greatly.

[PennyQuilts]

Your crusade against urbanism is noted.

Got a little notebook, Spartan? =)

[Larry OKC]

Questor: Small tiny closets aren't really that unusual in older buildings and even more of an oddity to us today are those places without closets at all! Sometimes see that on HGTV's House Hunters and seems to be even more prevalent in other countries. As you said, people had less clothes and many people used chests, dressers and armouirs (sp). taking their closets/storage with them.