The Pointes losing population (Detroit, Livonia: housing, universities, retire)

[Dexterguy]

Why are The Pointes losing population? I heard that they were still doing pretty well even with the sluming house market of Michigan. Are people moving out of the Pointes and moving to the Northern or Western Suburbs?

[dmetro]

Originally Posted by Dexterguy

Why are The Pointes losing population? I heard that they were still doing pretty well even with the sluming house market of Michigan. Are people moving out of the Pointes and moving to the Northern or Western Suburbs?

Not necessarily. The Pointes have a maturing population. Many families that once consisted of parents with children have now aged; the parents have retired and the kids have moved out of the house. This can happen in any community, and once there is no more available land for development, they lose more people than they gain. So, to answer your question, no, the Pointes aren't declining, the majority population is just getting older.

[Dexterguy]

Are new families that are just getting started moving into the pointes or is it mostly older people and senoirs?

[dmetro]

Well, as the retired people move out, younger families move in. So, yes, I believe that there are younger people and families in the population.

[Dexterguy]

Is this the same thing that is happening with Livonia and their decreasing population, or are they being hit with the housing slump?

[dmetro]

Originally Posted by Dexterguy

Is this the same thing that is happening with Livonia and their decreasing population, or are they being hit with the housing slump?

I would imagine it's a little bit of both, but the housing slump is only a minor factor. Livonia also has mostly older (1970's)housing and it's mostly built up, similar to the Pointes.

[Coldjensens]

Are the school populations in decline? That is always a good test of whether young families have stopped replacing older persons.

Many cities are seeing declining populations in schools. Detroit's closures are not just a factor of people getting away form bad schools. San Francisco, among other cities, has the same problem.

[Dexterguy]

I would think that that is the problem with the schools. I would think eventually younger families would start buying the older houses, and give a population boost to the troubled school districts.

[Cato the Elder]

Originally Posted by Dexterguy

I would think that that is the problem with the schools. I would think eventually younger families would start buying the older houses, and give a population boost to the troubled school districts.

One would think, but it's a generational problem too. It's purely anecdotal, but friends, and many people posting here, who grew up there, don't want to move back. It's quite isolated and its brahmin charms and magnificent architecture don't have quite the allure to gen Y and Z. This is assuming that they even stay in the state. As you can guess, many go on to elite universities and never come back. A surprising number of my neighbors grew up in GP, and isolation is the main citation for not moving back.