How Atlanta Decided It Can’t Out Suburb the Suburbs (Smyrna: apartments, rent)

[jsvh]

How Atlanta Decided It Can’t Out Suburb the Suburbs

Good article. The city of Atlanta has suffered for decades by trying to "Out Suburb the Suburbs" and imposing restrictive SFH only zoning, large setbacks, parking minimums. CoA thrives by offering metro Atlantans a real alternative to car dependency and sprawl. People want real urban / car-free lifestyle options and we will suffer as a region if we don't provide that choice.

[AnsleyPark]

Thanks for link, jsvh. Funny enough, the following popped up while I was reading the article. Pretty interesting in and of itself.

What if City-Loving Millennials Are Just a Myth? - The Urban Edge

[brown_dog_us]

A big part of it is that developers can't keep going out. The current limit was supported because a lot of jobs moved to places like Windward and that allowed people to live in Forsyth and Dawson counties. Companies aren't moving farther out, so there won't be a push to sprawl a bit farther.

[ElleKaye]

Originally Posted by AnsleyPark

Thanks for link, jsvh. Funny enough, the following popped up while I was reading the article. Pretty interesting in and of itself.

What if City-Loving Millennials Are Just a Myth? - The Urban Edge

That's what I got as well. Looks like pretty much nobody pretty much minds a good amount of space in their abode and the majority of millennials are not spring chickens anymore.

[arjay57]

Originally Posted by AnsleyPark

Thanks for link, jsvh. Funny enough, the following popped up while I was reading the article. Pretty interesting in and of itself.

What if City-Loving Millennials Are Just a Myth? - The Urban Edge

If cities really want to retain young people it will be mandatory to make urban schools attractive. That's by no means a hopeless quest but it will take some work.

[sedimenjerry]

Originally Posted by arjay57

If cities really want to retain young people it will be mandatory to make urban schools attractive. That's by no means a hopeless quest but it will take some work.

Well, really that should be done anyway for the sake of everyone.

[OuiOui]

Originally Posted by arjay57

If cities really want to retain young people it will be mandatory to make urban schools attractive. That's by no means a hopeless quest but it will take some work.

Preach! I keep telling people... it could never matter how many young adults move to the city if they all leave once they start a family. Coffee shops and shiny tall buildings and bike lanes are all fine, but we need to focus on these inner city schools in order to retain families! Families that live in the city will spend in the city. Isn't that a good investment for a city's future? Don't the children who are already in city schools deserve better?

[fourthwarden]

Originally Posted by AnsleyPark

Thanks for link, jsvh. Funny enough, the following popped up while I was reading the article. Pretty interesting in and of itself.

What if City-Loving Millennials Are Just a Myth? - The Urban Edge

An important thing to note on this is that purchasing a home only has a bit to do with where you want to live. I would love to live in the city's core, but I will have a hard time affording any of the housing stock by the time I get close to wanting to buy.

If I can only really afford to buy in the suburbs (if the West and South sides gentrify as they are expected to), then that's the only place I can afford to buy, no matter how much I WANT to stay in the city.

It’s well-known Millennials are delaying childbirth and marriage, in part due to financial reasons. Housing might follow a similar pattern.

“People can’t buy houses, so they’re staying in these apartments,” Myers said during a presentation in Houston earlier this month. “The whole system’s backed up. It’s not pretty.”

In other words, the trend we’re seeing might not be Millennials enamored with living in urban centers. It may be that those who flocked there in previous years now lack the wherewithal to leave, even though they want to do so.

This sort of touches on it, though I'd argue that there's been rise in rent prices due to the demand from people trying to live in the city.

Those young people aren’t trying to become gentrifiers. Their circumstances are forcing them to find the best housing they can on very little income.

Exactly, prices are determining where people can live, even if they don't want to be there. This is not at all new, but is dangerous when you have a generation having to spend far higher percentages of their income to get housing. Either we need to find a way to balance our affordable housing stock, or people will move out even if they don't want to.

[samiwas1]

Originally Posted by fourthwarden

Exactly, prices are determining where people can live, even if they don't want to be there. This is not at all new, but is dangerous when you have a generation having to spend far higher percentages of their income to get housing. Either we need to find a way to balance our affordable housing stock, or people will move out even if they don't want to.

True. I live in town in a little townhouse, and we want to move to something a little bigger in town. But unless you're ready to spend well over $400,000, you're not getting anything worthwhile in any decent area in the north half of town. We'll probably have to go out to Mabelton, more northern Smyrna, or other areas of Cobb.

[fourthwarden]

Originally Posted by samiwas1

True. I live in town in a little townhouse, and we want to move to something a little bigger in town. But unless you're ready to spend well over $400,000, you're not getting anything worthwhile in any decent area in the north half of town. We'll probably have to go out to Mabelton, more northern Smyrna, or other areas of Cobb.

My line of work is one of the better compensated lines, and even I won't really be able to afford anything not in pre-gentrified neighborhoods (I've seriously thought about doing this if I can find work in town). That's unless I'd want to take on a very large debt on top of my existing post-school debt.

Or I could rent, again in pre-gentrified areas.