• Aging with place and the ‘silver tsunami’

    The oldest baby boomers have crossed the 70-year old threshold, and this generation was the first to live their entire lives in a car-dependent society. Many are looking to move to an urban setting.
    While grocery shopping recently I witnessed a person roughly my age helping her mother shop. I couldn’t immediately identify her mother’s ailment or reason for needing help, and little did I know I’d be doing the same thing for my own mother this week following her eye surgery. The “silver tsunami...Read more

  • Real estate markets revealed

    An interactive map by Zimmerman/Volk Associates offers a detailed view of migration and mobility in counties nationwide.
    Geography and demographics geeks might want to check out a unique new resource—a fascinating interactive map with local information on real estate markets. The map was created by Zimmerman/Volk Associates (ZVA), the firm that invented the target market method of real estate market research. This...Read more

  • Failing golf communities not on par with neighborhoods

    When real estate switched from building mixed-use cities, towns, and neighborhoods, the industry adopted less sustainable selling points—like golf.
    The failure of golf course communities continues to be a massive problem nationwide, according to an article in The Wall Street Journal . With 1,200 golf communities nationwide, and golf declining as a past-time, many homeowners face declining property values and are saddled with heavy membership...Read more

  • Maybe we CAN build our way out of an urban housing shortage

    As cities boom, rental rates are easing due to supply.
    Despite traditional cities growing at rates unlike anything they have seen since the middle of the 20th Century—urban rents are surprisingly under control nationwide, according to a recent Apartment List survey of rental rates in the 25 biggest cities. The findings of the survey put media reports...Read more