Ha Ha Ha!
I love the use of Tea Party phrases in vogue right now.
I prefer 'Taking the ROW Back!'
Today's automobiles are the peak of technology.
I don't think they can be improved much in terms of safety, comfort, agility and power. They truly are marvels of the modern world and a far cry from the crapbuckets I drove in the 70s.
I retain a small, modern, efficient car and a motorscooter. (Personally, I hope this is my last four-wheeler.)
What preceded even me however were hundreds of years of Private vs. Public space, or 'property' if you like.
The tenets of public space demand that public space be shared equally, providing as close to a perfect opportunity of access as possible.
For only the last hundred years our public Rights Of Way have been given to automobiles. Even sidewalks are shrinking in the case where some brainwashed 'traffic engineer' believes 'increased flow' is the answer to volume.
No one should expect to move any faster than 20-25 MPH in an urbanized area. Residential neighborhoods should be even slower.
There's no 'war on cars.' Cars are gonna be just fine!
Wednesday, January 30, 2013
Sprawl and Valuation
Some Observations
Related: Automobiles are now estimated to cost around $10,000 per year to own over their life span.
Those costs will never go down. 6-8 YRS = 60 to 80K.
As the inner and even second ring suburbs now struggle with housing maintenance and infrastructure costs, I feel there are only two places to purchase a home that will protect your 'investment':
1. Any of the pseudo-trendy 'new' exurbs.
This is a false value in most cases. The housing is typically poor quality and only of a certain 'perceived' value, which is best 'flipped' before another exurb becomes more trendy, or ex-urban expansion over-extends as we saw in the recent housing crash. Needless to say, an exurb needs a car with its additional costs. Your tax rates may be low however, as there is no infrastructure to fix: yet.
2. A trendy neighborhood in a city.
Of course we're all aware of the issues involved: poor schools, ineffective political 'leadership,' crime, etc.
The benefits of living in a city include the Arts and social interaction, existing infrastructure, and, well LIFE.
We're in a lukewarm period of return: Neighborhoods are 'hot,' existing residents are squeezed, invaders eventually leave to send their kids to a 'good' school, (which actually means 'culturally similar to their own.')
My 125 year-old crappy house has increased in value 5 fold.
Just sayin.
Come back and start a new 'trendy' neighborhood. I'll move there with ya.
Related: Automobiles are now estimated to cost around $10,000 per year to own over their life span.
Those costs will never go down. 6-8 YRS = 60 to 80K.
As the inner and even second ring suburbs now struggle with housing maintenance and infrastructure costs, I feel there are only two places to purchase a home that will protect your 'investment':
1. Any of the pseudo-trendy 'new' exurbs.
This is a false value in most cases. The housing is typically poor quality and only of a certain 'perceived' value, which is best 'flipped' before another exurb becomes more trendy, or ex-urban expansion over-extends as we saw in the recent housing crash. Needless to say, an exurb needs a car with its additional costs. Your tax rates may be low however, as there is no infrastructure to fix: yet.
2. A trendy neighborhood in a city.
Of course we're all aware of the issues involved: poor schools, ineffective political 'leadership,' crime, etc.
The benefits of living in a city include the Arts and social interaction, existing infrastructure, and, well LIFE.
We're in a lukewarm period of return: Neighborhoods are 'hot,' existing residents are squeezed, invaders eventually leave to send their kids to a 'good' school, (which actually means 'culturally similar to their own.')
My 125 year-old crappy house has increased in value 5 fold.
Just sayin.
Come back and start a new 'trendy' neighborhood. I'll move there with ya.
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