Its never been my dream, and even people I talk to who live in the suburbs rarely express some fondness for spending so much time locked in automobiles. More often then not, it was about economics, plain and simple. The inexpensive houses were located far from the city center, and driving 20 miles one way to commute was not a big deal when gas was less than a dollar a gallon. Even now, such commutes are pinching consumer spending but have yet to force many people out of their homes.
Yet the economics are changing, and so are the behaviors of those looking to buy homes. From MSNBC.com:
Real estate agents, transportation officials and industry surveys indicate that home buyers are placing more importance on cutting their gas bills and commute times than they have since the oil shocks of the 1970s.
Full article here
Honestly I've been praying for the death of the suburbs for as long as I can remember. I realize a need still exists for affordable housing, and that much investment will be lost due to the devaluation of inexcusably far-flung suburbs, but honestly, isn't it about time that people start concentrating around downtowns and around rail stations. Unfortunately most of the homeowners who will be hurt by the suburban housing downturn were part of a system that was bigger than them: that was designed to grant risky loans in exchange for the illusion of infinite growth and ever-growing housing values.
It will certainly be interesting as it dawns on Americans that endless freeways, sprawling suburbs and 2 hour commutes are a piss poor investment at best, and at worst a ruinous mal-appropriation of resources. James Howard Kunstler calls the American suburbs "the biggest misallocation of resources in human history".
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