Atlanta has the most affordable housing in the world (house prices, to buy)

[arjay57]

How about this? Atlanta housing is the most affordable in the whole world.

7th Annual Demographia International Housing Affordability Survey: 2011


This survey covers the metropolitan markets in Australia, Canada, Ireland, New Zealand, the United Kingdom, the U.S., and China (Hong Kong).

[MathmanMathman]

Clustered with all those rustbelt metros is a bit embarrassing. Better than even Detroit? Makes me think Atlanta's market has really taken a tumble, but a great time to buy obviously.

[alinka72]

So Australia, Canada, Ireland, New Zealand, the United Kingdom, the U.S., and China (Hong Kong) encompasses the entire world? That's presumptious at best.

[arjay57]

Originally Posted by alinka72

So Australia, Canada, Ireland, New Zealand, the United Kingdom, the U.S., and China (Hong Kong) encompasses the entire world? That's presumptious at best.

You know, that is kind of presumptuous. Apparently this survey just attempts to deal with the English speaking world.

I should amend the title of thread.

[testa50]

Wow. LOTS of political stuff at the beginning of the piece. Definitely doesn't succumb to the dry, academic tone!

Anyhow, I guss the metric chosen is multiplier over median income, which is an interesting way to look at things. Having a low (median home value) : (median income) ratio is a good thing in many ways: it allows people to devote less of their income to housing, and it improves upward mobility.

Some parts of the world, and indeed the country, are increasingly resembling "homeowner aristocracies", where even upper middle class folks have a very tough time affording a decent house on their income alone, and a hefty chunk of people who own nice houses wouldn't be able to afford them if not for the fact that they built up lots of equity during a peroid of great housing price appreciation. We're not caught up in the nonsensical game, and I view that as a good thing; expect those high-priced cities to languish over the long run.

That's not to make the leap that New Urbanism is a sham, as the author seemingly tries to do.

[arjay57]

Originally Posted by testa50

Wow. LOTS of political stuff at the beginning of the piece. Definitely doesn't succumb to the dry, academic tone!

True. When I first read this I just looked at the numbers and not the introduction. Joel Kotkin has had some controversial opinions, of course. And Demographia is affiliated with Wendell Cox, whose views are also controversial.

Nonetheless, if the data are correct it still makes for an interesting study. I'd think it was a plus for Atlanta to have the most affordable housing of any big city. Is that not the case?

[testa50]

Originally Posted by arjay57

True. When I first read this I just looked at the numbers and not the introduction. Joel Kotkin has had some controversial opinions, of course. And Demographia is affiliated with Wendell Cox, whose views are also controversial.

Nonetheless, if the data are correct it still makes for an interesting study. I'd think it was a plus for Atlanta to have the most affordable housing of any big city. Is that not the case?

Sorry, I wasn't super clear. I pretty much agree: it's far better to have low house prices than high ones.

But there's a caveat: low house prices can be a symptom of economic distress. That doesn't mean that all low housing price cities are economically distressed, or that high housing priced cities aren't economically distressed. With that said, we've always had affordable housing, and will for the forseeable future.

[RainyRainyDay]

One thing that low housing prices do is trap you. I doubt my husband and I will ever afford to move back to Vancouver/Victoria, BC. Our closest family are all there ... teachers and such living in homes worth 3/4 million or so which they own outright, due to having owned their homes for over ten years. I don't see how the house prices in that market are sustainable, but for the moment, we can't go there.

[SW30303]

Interesting article, to me at least.

Yes, for a large metro area, Atlanta has "reasonably" priced housing on average as compared to most other areas within the US. Comparing prices with select cities (where English is spoken) in other countries can be somewhat tricky due to variations in currency valuations, but this person's research demonstrates their points well from what I can tell by a quick read of most of the article.

I read somewhere recently that Vancouver, BC, the average priced single detached residential house costs 1 Million Canadian Dollars! I have some close friends and distant family members living in Vancouver. Consequently, after reading RainyRainyDay's point is rather crystal clear and confirms what I already know: almost no one in BC could buy a house at such inflated prices right now, and I don't see that run up in prices as sustainable either.

[MathmanMathman]

Originally Posted by SW30303

Interesting article, to me at least.

Yes, for a large metro area, Atlanta has "reasonably" priced housing on average as compared to most other areas within the US. Comparing prices with select cities (where English is spoken) in other countries can be somewhat tricky due to variations in currency valuations, but this person's research demonstrates their points well from what I can tell by a quick read of most of the article.

I read somewhere recently that Vancouver, BC, the average priced single detached residential house costs 1 Million Canadian Dollars! I have some close friends and distant family members living in Vancouver. Consequently, after reading RainyRainyDay's point is rather crystal clear and confirms what I already know: almost no one in BC could buy a house at such inflated prices right now, and I don't see that run up in prices as sustainable either.

From what I understand, one reason is that Vancouver has very strict zoning that conforms to urban planners' dream city. It has been successful in making Vancouver a beautiful place (aside from its natural beauty) but in controlling growth, housing prices soar. Atlanta's sprawl, as much as people complain about it, has made this area highly affordable