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Rents are dropping across the US

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Re: Rents are dropping across the US

#361

Post by rustybelt »

watwut wrote: post #133
treeman79 wrote: post #103

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Kids change mindset. Kids love yards. They love the little creek that runs past. I love the safety. Small neighborhood, we all know each other and look out for the kids that run around playing.

Yeah, and then you have to drive them to and from school, they have not much to do unless you drive them and one of you two have to stay home due to all that driving.

Were you a private school kid? School buses or walking were the norm for most people I know who grew up in the suburbs.

Re: Rents are dropping across the US

#362

Post by rustybelt »

colinmhayes wrote: post #356
andykx wrote: post #324

Earlier quoted context omitted.

You’re spot on about the diversity. I did not grow up in a very diverse place and it’s one thing I feel that I really missed out on. But parks? In the NYC suburbs (maybe exurbs is more accurate) where I grew up, I had like 5 beautiful state parks within walking distance from my house. I could walk through my friend’s backyard to a pair of beautiful lakes where we could swim, fish, kayak, whatever. It’s interesting. I…

I live in Chicago which has the entire lakefront as park space and is filled with tons of other parks too. The suburbs are all off the lake so they don't have any beaches. Unfortunately there aren't any national parks or mountains in the midwest so the suburbs don't really have anything that the city doesn't other than some more empty space I guess.

You should check out the forest preserves. The Chicago suburbs really got it right there.

Re: Rents are dropping across the US

#363

Post by gen220 »

asdff wrote: post #328
gen220 wrote: post #274

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Some things I’ve observed about families I know who seem to have suburban life figured out: - regular (meaning periodic) physical activity is essential, for the adults and kids. Sports leagues, gym classes, whatever. If you’re not into sportsy physical activity, you need a physical hobby like woodworking, gardening, or literally anything to get your blood flowing - your weekly schedule looks totally different as the…

I do all of these things living in a city

Sorry, I didn't mean to imply that they couldn't be done in a city. Depending on the city, you might even have better access to these activities (cooking classes, culture tours, etc.). However, these activities are invariably more expensive in urban environments, because you're competing with a higher volume of people for a small amount of space. And, where there are usually cheaper alternatives in the suburbs, there are typically no alternatives in the city.

For example, imagine that your kid wants to pursue rock climbing or small boat sailing, and your family lives in NYC. Or, you want to have a holiday gathering of 20+ people. The options exist but they're exorbitantly expensive.

Re: Rents are dropping across the US

#364

Post by sharadov »

core-questions wrote: post #271
sharadov wrote: post #182

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Suburbs suck, mind-numbing pits, I don't know why people with families love them. I think they all secretly hate them, it's just that they want you to share their misery by convincing you to move.

> mind-numbing pits What's so bad about a nice suburb? By nice, I mean "with parks, and nearby mountains, and community centers", not just cookiecutter crap from horizon to horizon. Sure, there's no live jazz around, but it's not like the city is so far away that I can't go and get some of that when I want it, and meanwhile I can leave my kid's bike on the lawn overnight and it'll be there in the morning.

My definition of suburbia is the endless rows of cookie-cutter houses within gated communities, where the closest grocery store is 5 mi away and the eating options are TGIF or Ruby Tuesday. What you describe is where I live, its 15 min from downtown and I've great parks nearby, lots of mom and pop restaurants, hiking and biking trails.

Re: Rents are dropping across the US

#365

Post by sharadov »

ghaff wrote: post #189
sharadov wrote: post #182

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Suburbs suck, mind-numbing pits, I don't know why people with families love them. I think they all secretly hate them, it's just that they want you to share their misery by convincing you to move.

I'd point out that there are plenty of areas that are neither urban or classic suburbia. But I'm guessing you don't like more rural areas either.

I don't think I could live permanently in a rural area, but I would love to have a place where I could go down once every couple of weeks, with a big backyard, am sure my kids would love it.

Re: Rents are dropping across the US

#366

Post by colinmhayes »

rustybelt wrote: post #362
colinmhayes wrote: post #356

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I live in Chicago which has the entire lakefront as park space and is filled with tons of other parks too. The suburbs are all off the lake so they don't have any beaches. Unfortunately there aren't any national parks or mountains in the midwest so the suburbs don't really have anything that the city doesn't other than some more empty space I guess.

You should check out the forest preserves. The Chicago suburbs really got it right there.

I really enjoy the forest preserve. Love biking the north branch trail. Especially nice how easy it is to get to it by going up Milwaukee.

Re: Rents are dropping across the US

#367

Post by hcknwscommenter »

kerkeslager wrote: post #360
hcknwscommenter wrote: post #159

Earlier quoted context omitted.

"If you're making enough to pay for a $5000/month apartment, you're renting by choice" I don't think that's right. E.g., SF house and rent prices, assuming non-WFH policies require paying 5000/mo if your household is larger than 2 people. It's not a choice unless you happen to be blessed by rent control or rich enough to afford the 400K in cash for the down payment.

People who have enough money to pay $5000/mo in rent have options for other places to live. I have significantly less income, and I have options of places to live.

yes, but those options almost invariably result in having a significantly less income. Believe me, I am working hard to make the location/salary arbitrage work, but employers are not stupid. The only way to "guarantee" it is to work for yourself, but if you leave the high-cost-of-living area, your network gets drastically smaller and you risk losing work.

Re: Rents are dropping across the US

#368

Post by colinmhayes »

gen220 wrote: post #363
asdff wrote: post #328

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I do all of these things living in a city

Sorry, I didn't mean to imply that they couldn't be done in a city. Depending on the city, you might even have better access to these activities (cooking classes, culture tours, etc.). However, these activities are invariably more expensive in urban environments, because you're competing with a higher volume of people for a small amount of space. And, where there are usually cheaper alternatives in the suburbs, there…

I was able to start a sailing team at my city high school because the park district gave us free boat and coaching time. They also had extremely cheap classes that anyone can take.

Re: Rents are dropping across the US

#369

Post by fatnoah »

Androider wrote: post #158
treeman79 wrote: post #103

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Kids change mindset. Kids love yards. They love the little creek that runs past. I love the safety. Small neighborhood, we all know each other and look out for the kids that run around playing.

I bought into this mindset, and regret it. That's what you do when you have kids, move to the 'burbs, right? We moved from a big city to suburban hell a few years after having a kid. In those first years, we took our kid to museums, parks, playgrounds, etc. all over the city. Now there is jack shit to do in the suburb we're in except going to the mall, cannot walk anywhere, have to use the car 100% of the time to eve…

>I bought into this mindset, and regret it.

I feel you. We did the same, but that's because our son has ADHD and public or private schools in the city weren't cutting the mustard. We all miss the city and our friends there, and I miss walking everywhere. It was an awesome place to raise a child, but circumstances forced our hand.

Re: Rents are dropping across the US

#370

Post by doh »

wiether wrote: post #336
doh wrote: post #123

Earlier quoted context omitted.

We just canceled our lease two weeks ago. We had a large apartment in one of the new high-rises in Downtown LA. The last offer was 3 months free and 2 parking spaces free if we stay for 12 month lease, which comes to 34% discount on the rent including parking. Other buildings are offering by default two months rent-free and they will pay the movers if you decide to move in. DTLA is a special place as it has plenty of…

> We just canceled our lease two weeks ago. We had a large apartment in one of the new high-rises in Downtown LA. > The last offer was 3 months free and 2 parking spaces free if we stay for 12 month lease, which comes to 34% discount on the rent including parking. That's weird how everytime I discover something new about "free market" in USA, I'm glad to live in Europe. Having to negotiate your lease like you would w…

I'm originally from Europe. I do like that I can negotiate better terms than the market, but I also acknowledge that this is not better system for everyone.

The benefit of the US system is that higher rents create more incentive to produce more supply. It sometimes breaks down, like it did in SF, but in DTLA this worked well. Developers smelled opportunity, build bunch of new apartment buildings and we were able to lower our rent by 35% just within 14 months.

If the market was regulated, then no new supply would be produced as there is no incentive to do so.

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