Top Ten Best and

Worst US

Housing Markets

GROUNDING

Chapter 12 examined the patterns of settlements at a national and global

scale

This chapter looks at where people and activities are locate

within settlements

CITIES AND URBANIZATION

A MEGALOPOLIS is a series of large metropolitan areas so close that they form one continuous urban complex like BosNYWash, Chicago-milwauukee-Pittsburgh and LA-San Diego-Tijuana.

URBANIZATION is the process by which the population and infrastructure of cities grow. Population increases both in number of people in a cities as well as percentage of total population living in cities.

A CENTRAL CITY is a city that is large enough to be surrounded by suburbs.An URBANIZED AREA is a central city plus its contiguous built-up suburbs where population density exceeds 1000 people per square mile.A METROPOLITAN STATISTICAL AREA (MSA) is a method of measuring the functional area of a city that includes an urbanized area with a population of at least 50,000, the county within which the city is located, adjacent counties with a high population density and a large percentage of residents working in the central city’s county.

A GALACTIC CITY is a large central city surrounded by other distinct cities which developed to house people working in the central city.

NORTH AMERICAN

CBDs

THELAYOUT

The CENTRAL BUSINESS DISTRICT (CBD) is a compact area, usually one of the oldest districts in the city (if not the original settlement) with a high concentration of the shops, offices and public institutions. Shops with a high threshold, shops with a long range and shops that serve people who work in the CBD locate in the CBD.

Characteristics

1. Tallest buildings2. Most pedestrian traffic3. Highest value land4. Smallest store fronts5. Highest pop density (by day)6. Original settlement site7. Compact (<1% of urban area)8. High, centralized accessibility9. Hosts retail, office and gov sites

Linkages within CBD

1. competitive: common stores cluster near each other to take advantage of large customer base

2. Ancillary: service establishments cluster near major employment and transpo centers.

3. Commensal: activities serving the same clientele cluster (theaters and restaurants)

Environmantal Issues in the CBD

1. Impenatrable surface (heavy runoff)2. Increased air/water/noise pollution3. Poor soils (compaction, loss of topsoil,

construction debris)4. Fewer species of wildlife5. Channeled windiness6. Lack of natural sunlight at ground

level7. Increased atmospheric warmTh

(URBAN HEAT ISLAND)

CHANGING POPULATION DENSITY

Population density changes as distance from the CBD increases. Due to the land cost at various distances, certain types of housing will be more prevalent at certain distances, thus changing the population density… (highrise apartments… older apartments… subdivided homes… then tight, single family homes… duplexes… detached houses… suburban McMansions

NORTH AMERICAN

CBDs

LANDUSES

The downtown of a settlement is called the CENTRAL BUSINESS DISTRICT (CBD).

CBDs comprise less than 1% of the urban area, but the comprise a large percentage of the services. CONSUMER and BUSINESS Services are attracted to the CBD because of its accessibility and because it is the focal point of the transportation network.

RETAIL SERVICES IN THE CBD

Traditionally, three types of retail services located in the CDB:

1. Retailers with a high threshold2. Retailers with a high range3. Retailers serving other CBD workers

HIGH RANGE

SERVING OTHER WORKERS

HIGH THRESHOLD

High threshold retailers (like department stores) like the CBD for its accessibility to people.

Stores clustered near one intersection and rents were high.

Now, most have left the CBD and are clustered in suburban malls

High range retailers (like jewelry stores) are specialty stores whose customers shop infrequently.

They preferred CBD because customers were so widely scattered.

Now most have left the CBD and also cluster in suburban malls.

Some retailers serve those who work in businesses in the CBD (office supplies, computers, work clothing, dry cleaning, shoe repair, etc.).

These services are expanding in the CBD because number of downtown workers (and thus demand) has increased.

BUSINESSES IN THE CBD

Many offices cluster in the CBD for proximity to other offices and workers who locate there (advertising, finance, journalism, banking, law).

Despite modern commo, they still depend on face to face interaction.

The offices are centrally located and expedite interaction through proximity.

Central locations are also convenient when employing workers who live in a variety of different neighborhoods.

NORTHAMERICAN

CBDs

BID RENT

THEORY

Services wish to maximize their profitability, so they are more willing to pay more money for land close to the CBD and less for land further away from it because the more accessible an area (i.e., the greater the concentration of customers), the more profitable it will be.

An ANCHOR STORE is one of the largest stores in a shopping mall or district that draws consumers and thus draws other stores to locate near it.

The CENTRAL BUSINESS DISTRICT (CBD) is a compact area, usually one of the oldest districts in the city (if not the original settlement) with a high concentration of the shops, offices and public institutions. Shops with a high threshold, shops with a long range and shops that serve people who work in the CBD locate in the CBD.

BID RENT THEORY states that price and demand for property changes as the distance from the CBD increases.

Different land users will compete for land close to the city centre.

NORTHAMERICAN

CBDs

COMPETITIONFOR

LAND

HIGH LAND COSTS

SKYSCRAPERS

ACTIVITIES EXCLUDED FROM THE CBD

INDUSTRY

RESIDENTIAL

Because the CBD is so accessible and because space in it is limited, land is expensive. One square meter of land in Tokyo’s CDB sells for $15,000 per square meter.

Therefore, land in the CDB is marked by two distinct characteristics:INTENSIVE LAND USE

CBDs use land both above and below ground.

Subways, parking garages, loading docs, utility lines, and sometimes even walkways and shops are underground.

Although normally very expensive, demand for land in the CBD has made skyscrapers feasible.

Buildings give each city its own unique skyline.

Most cities passed controls on # and height.

The nature of the activity determines its floor.The high and ever rising cost of land in the CBD has made two types of activities economically unfeasible in most CBDs:

Modern factories require lots of land and large, one-story buildings and therefore have moved to the suburbs.

Container ships are too large to maneuver into urban ports, and so many cities have transformed waterfronts to tourism.

Many people used to live downtown (both wealthy and poor).In the 1900s, most moved due to both push and pull factors:

Pulls: Larger suburban homes with yards and modern schoolsPushes: rising land costs in CBDs.

US cities in the 21st century have seen a resurgence of urban living, esp. for empty-nesters and young, childless professionals.

CBDsOUTSIDETHE US

DIFFERENCES FROM US CBDs

--Less commerce (churches and palaces dominate)--Streets are often narrower--Many city centers incorporate large, greenspace squares/parks--European CBDs most often have lowrise building--More people live in downtown areas--Supermarkets, butchers, bakers and food stroes are common--Many CBDs ban motor vehicle traffic

-- Since new construction is often banned, old buildings are renovated but renovation is costly and produces limited space… therefore, rents are higher

BUT ANYWAY…

Changing industrial factors and the recession in the US

has caused some settlements (cities) to be

more attractive than others.

A decent measure of a city’s attractiveness is the

strength of its housing market.

Thus, the ten worst and best performing housing

markets in the US…

LOSING MARKETSAccording to the National Association of realtors, housing prices fell in most of the

country from the beginning of 2010 to the first quarter of 2011. These are the top five fastest-falling markets.

1: Gulfport-Biloxi, MS 2: Akron, OH 3: Salem, OR

4: Dayton, OH 5: Cleveland, OH

Rounding out the Bottom

6: Miami, FL -19.7 percent7: Ocala, FL -18.8 percent8: Allentown, PA -18.4 percent9: Tucson, AZ. -18.0 percent10: Cumberland, MD -17.9 percent

Overall, prices declined in all four U.S. regions. Midwest: a 5.3 percent dropNortheast: 5 percent dropWest: 4.7 percent dropSouth 0.6 percent drop

Regional Declines

1: Charlotte, NC 2: Buffalo-Niagra, NY 3: Burlington, VT

4: Jackson, MS 5: Florence, SC

WINNING MARKETSAccording to the National Association of Realtors, housing prices went up in one quarter of metropolitan markets from the beginning of 2010 to the first quarter of 2011. These are the top five fastest-growing housing markets.

Other WinnersDecatur, IL 8.4 percent

Canton, OH 6.7 percent

Columbia, MO. 6.7 percentShreveport, LA 6.6 percentFort Myers, FL 6.3 percent