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Portland is a PR machine for light rail & streetcar

Here are Some Facts About Portland Oregon          

August 8, 2005

That Hissing Sound

By PAUL KRUGMAN

New York Times

 

In Flatland, which occupies the middle of the country, it's easy to build houses. When the demand for houses rises, Flatland metropolitan areas, which don't really have traditional downtowns, just sprawl some more. As a result, housing prices are basically determined by the cost of construction. In Flatland, a housing bubble can't even get started.

 

But in the Zoned Zone, which lies along the coasts, a combination of high population density and land-use restrictions - hence "zoned" - makes it hard to build new houses. So when people become willing to spend more on houses, say because of a fall in mortgage rates, some houses get built, but the prices of existing houses also go up. And if people think that prices will continue to rise, they become willing to spend even more, driving prices still higher, and so on. In other words, the Zoned Zone is prone to housing bubbles.

 

Read the Whole Story  Also see: Land Use Regulation and the US Housing Price

Housing Bubble

Updated February 21, 2012

Also see:

Cost Of Housing

Why You Can't Afford a House

 

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