Demographia
Google
The Public Purpose
Rental Car Tours
Demographia
rental car tours
publicpurpose











ORDER

NEW ITEMS


Urban Tours by Rental Car Demographic Briefs
Demographia Charts
Urban Planning
Commentaries
Policy Points
Book Store
Subscribe (Free)
Urban Policy Group
Transport Policy Group Corrections/Permissions
Demographia Capabilities

Wendell Cox
Brief Biography
Biography
Resume
Photograph

SUBJECT INDEX
Demographics
Int'l & National
Metro Areas: US
Local Areas: US
Religion
Urban Areas: US

Urban Policy
Agriculture
Air Pollution
City on a Hill
Density
Demographia Presentations & Publications
Economics
Home Ownership
Housing
Infrastructure
Local Areas: US
Metro Areas: US
Neo-Trad. Reviews
Quality of Life
Parks
Portland
Open Space
Policy
Social Inclusion
Transport
Urban Areas: US
Urbanization

NATIONS
Argentina
Australia
Brazil
Canada
China
Europe
France
India
Japan
Mexico
Europe
Netherlands
Russia
United Kingdom
United States
URBAN AREAS
Largest 850 World Urban Areas: Density

US Urban Areas 1950-2000

US from 1900

Amsterdam
Atlanta
Beijing
Birmingham
Bombay
Buenos Aires
Cairo
Chicago
Cleveland
Columbus
Dallas-Fort Worth
Detroit
Glasgow
Guadalajara
Guangzhou
Hong Kong
Houston
Istanbul
Kobenhavn
Liverpool
London
Los Angeles
Manchester
Manila
Melbourne
Mexico City
Milan
Monterrey
Montreal
Moscow
Mumbai
Nagoya
New York
Osaka-Kobe-Kyoto
Ottawa
Paris
Philadephia
Portland, Oregon
Rotterdam
San Antonio
San Francisco
Seattle
Seoul
Shanghai
Shenzhen
St. Louis
St. Petersburg
Stockholm
Sydney
Tianjin
Tokyo-Yokohama
Toronto
Vancouver
Zurich

COMMERCE
Most Job Growth in Smaller Firms

State & Local Taxes

State Corporate Taxes

US Trade Union Market Share 1900+

Demographia International Housing Affordability (2023 Edition)
Presented by the Urban Reform Institute and the Frontier Centre for Public Policy
GOVERNMENT LAND USE POLICY: MAJOR SOURCE OF INEQUALITY
The pandemic related demand shock that drove house prices to record heights last year is beginning to moderate. Some housing markets (metropolitan areas) experienced improvements in housing affordability, but most markets remain severely unaffordable with a median multiple (median house price divided by median household income) of 5.1 or more. The least affordable markets are Hong Kong, at 18.8, Sydney at 13.3, Vancouver at 12.0, Honolulu at 11.8, San Jose at 11.5, Los Angeles at 11.3, Auckland at 10.7, Melbourne at 9.9, Toronto at 9.5 and San Diego at 9.4. The most affordable market is Pittsburgh, with a median multiple of 3.1, followed by Rochester at 3.2, with Cleveland and St. Louis, at 3.5. In Under Pressure: The Squeezed Middle-Class, the OECD finds that the middle-class faces ever rising costs of living and that rising owned house prices are the “main driver of rising middle-class expenditure.” Research by Northwestern University economist Mathew Rognlie cites rapidly rising house values as a principal cause of increasing wealth inequality around the world. Where land use policy contributes to deteriorating housing affordability, the resulting increase in inequality should be recognized as an outcome of public policy. Solving the housing affordability problem requires restoration of the competitive market for land in “urban containment markets” and avoiding urban containment where competitive land markets have survived.


  Canada's Middle-Income Housing Affordability Crisis (with Ailin He)
  A Question of Values: Middle-Income Housing Affordability and Urban Containment Policy
Putting People First: Alternative Perspective & Evaluation of the NCE Cities "Trillion Dollar" Report
Research Summary: Smart Growth & Housing Costs

2007 Open Letter to Bank for International Settlements on Land Regulation & Economic Risks
The Evolving Urban Form (Series) newgeography.com



Reducing Greenhouse Gas Emissions from Personal Mobility: Opportunities & Possibilities
Smart Growth's Role in the "Panic of 2008" VIDEO
Housing Form in Australia and its Impact on Greenhouse Gas Emissions
How Smart Growth Exacerbated the International Financial Crisis: Heritage Foundation
The Housing Crash and Smart Growth: NCPA
Sustainable Development in Urban Areas: Opportunites & Possibilites: Paris Senat Presentation

Newgeography.com Commentaries
Huffington Post Commentaries
NEW ITEMS | URBAN TOURS BY RENTAL CAR | THE PUBLIC PURPOSE

 QUICK INDEX (TABLE OF CONTENTS)
Agriculture
Climate Change
Compact Development
Economics: General
Economics: The Panic of 2008
Financial Crisis
Freight Transport
Global Warming
Governance
Government Amalgamation
Government Containment
The Great Recession
Greenhouse Gas Emissions
High Speed Rail
Housing Affordability
Land Use Policy
Local Democracy
Local Government
Local Government Consolidation
Metropolitan Area Index (Alphabetical)
Mortgage Meltdown
National Index (Alphabetical)
The Panic of 2008
Smart Growth
Suburbanization
Transport: Freight
Transport: High Speed Rail
Transport: Intercity Rail
Transport: Urban
United States: 2010 Census
United States Municipalities
United States Metropolitan Areas
United States Urban Areas
United States Commuting Profiles
Urban Area Index (Alphabetical)
Urban Containment
Urban Policy
Urban "Sprawl"
Urban Transport
World Core Cities
World Labor Markets
World Metropolitan Areas
World Municipalities
World Urban Areas & Urbanization
World Municipalities


INTERNATIONAL DATA
GENERAL URBAN INFORMATION
Urban Terms Defined
WORLD: URBAN AREAS & URBANIZATION
World's Largest Urban Areas: 2008
World Urban Areas (500,000+): Population, Density
World Urban Areas 2008 Population & Projections
World Urban Population Density by Nation & Area
World Urbanization by Urban Area Size
Traffic & Density: International Urban Areas
Estimated Urban Land Area: Selected Nations
International Suburban, Core & Urban Densities
Urban Tours by Rental Car
Historic Urban Area Density Data Index
Largest World Urban Areas: Suburban and Central City Data
Hyperdense City Sectors: Europe & North America
International Urban Areas: Data & Analysis
International Core Cities: Selected Neighborhood Densities
WORLD: METROPOLITAN AREAS (LABOR MARKETS)
International Metropolitan Areas (Labor Markets): 1965-
GDP per Capita: Top 100 World Metropolitan Areas
International Central Business District Data
World Urban Areas: Core & Suburban Growth
Largest World Metropolitan Areas: 1950
Urban Tours by Rental Car
WORLD: MUNICIPALITIES (CORE CITIES)
International Core Cities: Population Trends
World Core Cities: Population Losses
World Core Cities: Densiification & Loss Patterns
Urban Tours by Rental Car

ISSUES
LAND USE POLICY & HOUSING AFFORDABILITY
Annual Demographia Int'l Housing Affordability Survey
Research Summary: Smart Growth & Housing Costs
Domestic Migration by Regulatory Category 2000-2008
The Housing Crash and Smart Growth
Housing Affordability & Net Domestic Migration
Smart Growth's Role in the "Panic of 2008"
Letter: Bank for International Settlements: Regulation & Risks
How Smart Growth Exacerbated the Intl Finl Crisis: Heritage
US Housing Affordability Indicators by Ethnicity
Smart Growth & Housing Affordability: 8 Market Analsis
Housing Downturn in the US: Update 2009q1
The Panic of 2008: How Bad is It?
Household Residence & Stock Value from 1925
Don't Regulate Suburbs: Heritage Foundation
Causes of the Financial Crisis: Primer
House Price Increases & Subprime Mortgage Share
Smart Growth Bailout: The Mortgage Meltdown
Costs of Sprawl 2000: Erroneous Forecast
Smart Growth and Housing Affordability
OECD: Connects Land Use Regulation with High Prices
2008 Price Change by 2007 Median House Price
Home Ownership & Democratizing Prosperity
USA HUD: Smarth Growth Hurting Affordability
The NIMBY Report: A Decade Later: Dr. Ronald D. Utt
Overselling Local Street Grids
Domestic Migration & Housting Affordability
USA Housing Starts per 1,000 Households: 1920-
USA Metropolitan Areas: 1971 Median House Prices
Housing Crisis Moves into Phase II
The Smart Growth Bail-Out
Housing Bubble: Learning from California
Obama's Friends: Enemies of the American Dream?
House Prices to Fall Further: Especially in California
China Should Send Western Urban Planners Home
Houses, Castles & the Universal Dream
American Dream Alive & Well in Some Places
How Low can House Prices Go?
Distribution of House Price Declines: California
America: More Small Town than We Think
SUBURBANIZATION & URBAN POLICY
Costs of Sprawl Reconsidered: What the Data Really Show
How Smart Growth Exacerbated the Intl Finl Crisis: Heritage
Costs of Sprawl Measured in Benefits
Smart Growth & Housing Affordability: 8 Market Analsis
How the Suburbs Made Us Rich
The Auto, Economic Growth & Poverty Reduction
Brief: Smart Growth
Traffic & Density: International Urban Areas
Traffic & Density: US Urban Areas
Growth Management & Infrastructure Costs: California
China Should Send Western Urban Planners Home
Europeans are Moving to the Suburbs
Louvre Cafe Syndrome: Getting Europe Urbanization Wrong
Shorter Commutes in New York Suburbs
Smart Growth Victimizes African-Americans
Urban Planning in the Decline of American Cities
Lower Urban Density Associated with Higher Income
Happenstance & Artifacts: The Rusk City Elasticity Theory
Mythical Underpinnings of Smart Growth
Planning is a Tool, Not a Goal
Property, Prosperity & Poverty: IEA London Lecture
Myths About Smart Growth and the Toronto Greenbelt
Places Worth Caring About
PA Township Government: More Effective, Less Costly
Land Use: Largest California Metropolitan Areas
America: More Small Town than We Think
GREENHOUSE GAS EMISSIONS
Regulating Greenhouse Gases Not People: Heritage
Regulate GHGs .. Not People
How to Grapple with Greenhouse Gases
GHGS & Housing Form in Australia
Greenhouse Gas Policy: Separating Rhetoric from Reason
GHGS & Housing Form in Australia
Australia: GHG Emissions by Urban Transport Mode
United Kingdom: GHG Emissions by Urban Transport Mode
The Auto, Economic Growth & Poverty Reduction<
USA: GHG Emissions by Urban Transport Mode
USA: GHG Emissions by Intercity Transport Mode
Full Accounting of Transport GHG Emissions
Counterproductive GHG Policy in California
AGRICULTURE
Agriculture Index
Australia Agricultural Land: 1981-2005
Japan Agricultural Land: 1975-2000
EU-15 Agricultural Land: 1961-2001
Canada Agricultural Land
United States Urban & Agricultural Land: 1950-2000
United States Agricultural Land: 1950-2000
Agriculture Index
Agricultural Land & Values US Metropolitan Area
Agricultural Land & Values 2002 & 2007 by US Geog Sector
Agricultural Land: 2002 & 2007: States: USA
LOCAL DEMOCRACY & CONSOLIDATION
Consolidation Report for City of Toronto
Toronto Megacity: Costly Community Destruction
Local Democracy in Ohio: Efficiency by Size
PA Township Government: More Effective, Less Costly
Government Efficiency: New York Report
Separating Rhetoric from Reality: Townships in Indiana
Local Democracy in Illinois
Local Democracy in Chicagoland
Higher Costs of Rationing Local Govt: Michigan Report
Cover Story: PA Township Report
Montreal Suburbs Vote to Secede
Are Bigger Governments Better?
Failure of the Toronto Megacity: National Post Oped
USA Local Governments by Population: 2000
Montreal Demerger: National Post Oped
America: More Small Town than We Think
ECONOMICS
How Smart Growth Exacerbated the Intl Finl Crisis: Heritage
The Auto, Economic Growth & Poverty Reduction
USA Personal Income per Capita 1929-2008
How Smart Growth Exacerbated the Intl Finl Crisis: Report
Research Summary: Smart Growth & Housing Costs
US Housing Recession: Phase 1 & 2 Analysis
Household Residence & Stock Value from 1925)
USA Housing Starts per 1,000 Households: 1920-
House Price Increases & Subprime Mortgage Share
Smart Growth Bailout: The Mortgage Meltdown
Costs of Sprawl 2000: Erroneous Forecast
China City per Capita Income: September 2005
Regional GDP: Europe, N. America, Japan, Oceana
Brazil: Gross Domestic Product (GDP/PIB) by State: 2000
US Trade Union Market Share 1900-2004
Property, Prosperity & Poverty: IEA London Lecture
HIGH SPEED RAIL
XpressWest High Speed Rail: Default Seems Likely
DesertXpress High Speed Rail: Default Seems Likely
Las Vegas High Speed Rail: Default Seems Likely
High Speed Rail Taxpayer Risk Assessment VIDEO
Tampa to Orlando High Speed Rail Risk Assessment
California High Speed Rail: A Due Diligence Report
California High Speed Rail: An Updated Due Diligence Report
California High Speed Rail: Dynamic GHG Cost Analysis

Florida High Speed Rail Evaluation Report
Playing With Trains (NewGeography.com)
FREIGHT TRANSPORT
Europe (EU-27) & USA Freight GHGs
Freight Rail's Potential to Alleviate Traffic Congestion
Solving the Freight Rail Transportation Bottleneck
URBAN TRANSPORT
The Public Purpose Website
Urban Transport Fact Book
The Auto, Economic Growth & Poverty Reduction
US Transit Journey to Work Share: 1980 & 2008
Induced Traffic: Setting the Record Straight
Median Income by Commuting Mode: USA
Improving the Quality of Life through Telecommuting
London Congestion Charge Cautions: Commentary
Demographia USA Journey to Work Data 2007
USA Subsidies/Passenger Mile from 1960
New York: Employment & Commuting: 2006
USA Urban Transport Market Share from 1900-
USA Urban areas Transit Market Share 2008, 1983
The Dimensions of Sustainability: W.Cox and J.C.Ziv
US Mass Transit Value for Dollar: 1970-2006
Summary of Highway and Mass Transit Finance: USA: 2006
US Consumer Expenditures: Transport & Housing 2007
USA Urban Area Density & Intensity of Traffic
Freeway Access: USA, Canada, Australia & New Zealand
Freeway Access: High-Income World Urban Areas
US Journey to Work Data: 2000
Higher Density Intensifies Traffic Congestion & Air Pollution
Travel Time Less in Atlanta than Sydney
Blueprint 2030: Better Transportation for Atlanta
Apple Daily Oped on Hong Kong Rail Expansion
Public Transport in the USA: Value per New $
Highway User Fees Spent on Transit & Highways
The Realistic Limits of Public Transport
USA Urban Transport Statistics: A Compendium
Costs of Driving & Public Transport from 1960
Top USA Downtowns: USA: Jobs & Public Transport
Europe Work Trip Times: City & Suburbs
Light Rail & Freeway Lane Passenger Use per Kilometers
Delhi Metro Rider Subsidy Exceeds GDP/Capita
The American Gridlock Myth: Letter to the Daily Telegraph
Estimated Diversion of Roadway Traffic to Transit
Australia: Urban Automobile Use Trend
Australia: Core Employment & Transport Share
Western Europe Public Transport Market Shares
Megacities and Affluence: Transport & Land Use
USA Urban Transport Market Share from 1900
USA Urban Transport Market Share: Top 50 Urban Areas
USA: Largest Downtowns: Employment & Work Trip Travel
Shorter Commutes in New York Suburbs

NATIONAL DATA
AUSTRALIA
Melbourne Index
Sydney Index
Australia: Urban Areas Population & Density
Capital City CBDs: Employment Share and Commuting
Democratising Prosperity: Australia
Australia: Agricultural Land: 1981-2002
Housing Affordability Crisis in Australia
Perth: Declining Public Transport Share
International House Size
The Great Australian Dream Project
Australia Urban Land Area by State & Territory
BRAZIL
Brazil: Gross Domestic Product (GDP/PIB) by State: 2000
Why Can't Sao Paulo be Curitiba?
Sao Paulo: City of Hopes
CANADA
Canada Metropolitan Growth 2001 to 2006
Canada: Metropolitan Areas: Population from 1931
Myths About Smart Growth and the Toronto Greenbelt
Canada Urban Areas 3% More Dense than US
Population History: Montreal, Ottawa, Toronto & Vancouver
Housing Affordability Losses in Canada
Canada Religious Affiliation & Share
International House Size
Montreal Competitiveness Report
CHINA
China Cities Gross Domestic Product per Capita
China Province & Region Abbreviations
Biejing: Rental Car Tour
Changsha: Rental Car Tour
Chengdu: Rental Car Tour
Chongqing: Rental Car Tour
Dongguan: Rental Car Tour
Fushun: Rental Car Tour
Guangzhou: Rental Car Tour
Guiyang: Rental Car Tour
Hangzhou: Rental Car Tour
Hong Kong: Rental Car Tour
Hong Kong II: Rental Car Tour
Kunming: Rental Car Tour
Macau: Rental Car Tour
Nanjing: Rental Car Tour
Ningbo: Rental Car Tour
Pearl River Delta Overflight: Rental Car Tour
Shanghai: Rental Car Tour
Shenyang: Rental Car Tour
Shenzhen: Rental Car Tour
Suzhou: Rental Car Tour
Taiyuan: Rental Car Tour
Tianjin: Rental Car Tour
Wuhan: Rental Car Tour
Xi'an: Rental Car Tour
EUROPE
Europe: Metropolitan Migration Trends
FRANCE
Paris Index
France Urban Trends from 1962
International House Size
IRELAND
Housing in Ireland: Small & Overly Expensive
International House Size
JAPAN
Tokyo-Yokohama Index
Osaka-Kobe-Kyoto Index
Nagoya Index
Japan Urban Population & Employment Data: 2000
Tokyo: 1920 Boundaries: Population & Density from 1920
Japan Metropolitan Areas & Core Cities: 1965-2000
Cities Over 750,000 in Japan: Population from 1890
Japan Urban & Rural Land: 1975 & 2000
Japan CBD Employment Market Shares
Home Ownership, House Size & Detached Housing 2003
Japan Passenger Transport by Mode 1950+
International House Size
NEW ZEALAND
Housing Affordability Crisis in New Zealand
International House Size
UNITED KINGDOM
London Index
England Cities Population & Density 1891-
SE England New Towns Commuting Distance
United Kingdom Housing: Small & Overly Expensive
International House Size
UNITED STATES
Los Angeles Index
New York Index
Portland (Oregon) Index
Housing Affordability Losses in the United States
Smart Growth & Housing Affordability: 8 Market Analsis
Human Footprint by State: 1950-2000
US County Population 2000
US State Urban Share, Population & Density: 2000
Religious Affiliation in the United States
US Trade Union Market Share 1900-2005
US Population from 1900
Population, Households & Employment: USA 1950-2000
Successful Population Estimate Challenges
UNITED STATES: METROPOLITAN AREAS
Metropolitan Area Index
USA Metropolitan Area Population & Migration: Latest
USA Metropolitan Area Population Projections: 2030
Metropolitan Core City & Suburban Population
Metropolitan Core County & Suburban Growth 2000-2008
Metropolitan Areas, Core & Principal Cities: Population
USA Metropolitan Population from 1900
Smart Growth & Housing Affordability: 8 Market Analsis
USA Domestic Migration: Summary
Metropolitan Areas Domestic Migration Report
USA International Migration Metropolitan Areas
USA: Number of Governments in Metropolitan Areas
Misleading Census Segregation Data
Gross Metropolitan Product Data
Top Downtowns: USA: Jobs & Public Transport
America Moves to Smaller Metropolitan Areas
Domestic Migration & Housting Affordability 2000-2005
Poverty Rates Less in Less Dense Urban Areas: 2000
USA: Historical Core Municipalities: Classification
UNITED STATES: URBAN AREAS
Urban Area Index
Largest USA Urban Areas: 2000
USA Principal Urban Areas: 1950 to 2010
USA Urban Areas: Detailed: 1920 to 2000
Urban Densities in the United States From 1945
US Urbanized Areas: Density Profiles
Urbanization by State: 2000
Urbanized Land & Population from 1945
Large Urban Area Growth from 1950
Urban Areas by Population Quintile: 2000
Trends: Most Dense Urban Areas From 1950
Urban Area Density by Population Size: 2000
Historic Urban Area Density Data Index
Central Business Districts: Jobs & Commuting
USA: Historical Core Municipalities: Classification
UNITED STATES: MUNICIPALITIES (CITIES)
USA Cities Over 50,000: Population & Land Area: 2010
USA Cities Population & Land Area: 2000
USA Core Cities with 1950 Boundaries: 1950-2000 Trends
USA: Historical Core Municipalities: Classification
US City Population History from 1790
US Cities: Leading Population Gain by Decade 1860+
UNITED STATES: STATES
Index
Urban and Agricultural Footprint by State
State Population from 1900
State Urban Population & Density: 2000
USA State Domestic Migration from 2000
UNITED STATES: 2010 CENSUS
US National Work Trip Shares (Journey to Work): 1960-2010
US Major Metropolitan Work Trip Market Shares: 2000-2010
US Coastal County Population: 1900-2010
US Major Metropolitan Area Population: 2010
Housing Type by Major Metropolitan Area: 2000-2010
US Historical Core Municipalities Population: 2000-2010
US Historical Core Municipalities Categories
US Major Metropolitan Area Population: Suburbs & Cities
Movement of 2000 25-34 Cohort to 2010 Major Metropolitan
Movement of 2000 45-54 Cohort to 2010 Major Metropolitan
Movement of 2000 55-64 Cohort to 2010 Major Metropolitan
Cities and the Census by Joel Kotkin & Wendell Cox

METROPOLITAN AREA & URBAN AREA DATA
ADELAIDE
Central Business District: Employment & Commuting

ATLANTA
Atlanta Index
Smart Growth & Housing Affordability: 8 Market Analsis
American Dream Boundaries: Atlanta v. Portland
Arterial street system needed (AJC oped)
Atlanta Metropolitan Growth by Sector: 1960-2004
Atlanta & Boston: Similar Surburban Forms
Travel Time Less in Atlanta than Sydney
Atlanta, DFW, Houston: Fastest Growing, Most Sprawling
Blueprint 2030: Better Transportation for Atlanta
Rental Car Tour: Atlantic Station
AUSTIN
Zero Sum Game: The Streetcar
BEIJING
Beijing Index
Beijing: District Population & Density
Biejing: Rental Car Tour
BOSTON
Smart Growth & Housing Affordability: 8 Market Analsis
Boston Urbanized Area Population & Density from 1920
Atlanta & Boston: Similar Surburban Forms
Boston: Rental Car Tour
BRISBANE
Central Business District: Employment & Commuting
BUENOS AIRES
Buenos Aires Index
Buenos Aires Population History
Buenos Aires: Core & Suburban Population Trend
Buenos Aires: Rental Car Tour
CAIRO
Cairo Urban Area: Core & Suburban Population
Cairo: Rental Car Tour
CHENGDU
Chengdu: Rental Car Tour
CHICAGO
Chicago Index
Chicago Districts: Population & Density: 1980-
CINCINNATI
Urban Population & Density: 1900
Cincinnati: Rental Car Tour
DALLAS-FORT WORTH
Smart Growth & Housing Affordability: 8 Market Analsis
Transit Ridership Stagnant with More Light Rail
DELHI
Delhi: Rental Car Tour
DONGGUAN: SEE PEARL RIVER DELTA
GUANGZHOU: SEE PEARL RIVER DELTA
HONG KONG: SEE PEARL RIVER DELTA
HOUSTON
Post Hurricane Katrina Population Estimate
Houston: Rental Car Tour
Debunking the Houston Drives Most Myth
Urbanization in Houston Metropolitan Area
INDIANAPOLIS
Smart Growth & Housing Affordability: 8 Market Analsis
ISTANBUL
Istanbul: Rental Car Tour
JAKARTA (JABOTABEK)
Jabotabek: Rental Car Tour
Jakarta: Rental Car Tour
KANSAS CITY
Smart Growth & Housing Affordability: 8 Market Analsis
KOLKATA (CALCUTTA)
Kolkata: Rental Car Tour
KUALA LUMPUR
Kuala Lumpur: Rental Car Tour
LAS VEGAS
Las Vegas Land Market Analysis
Las Vegas: Rental Car Tour
Las Vegas Monorail Analysis: 2000
LONDON
London Index
Southeast England Population from 1891
London Urban Area Population & Density from 1680
London Area: Jobs-Housing Balance Planning Failure
London: What if There Had Been No Greenbelt?
London Boroughs 1951-
London Central Area Employment from 1997
London: Population & Density History
Historical Densities: New York, London, Paris, Los Angeles
Density Profile: Hong Kong, Tokyo & New York
London: Rental Car Tour
LOS ANGELES
Los Angeles Index
Los Angeles Most Dense North American Urban Area
Los Angeles Double Portland Density
City of Los Angeles: Population by Area from 1950
Historical Densities: New York, London, Paris, Los Angeles
Los Angeles: Rental Car Tour
MACAO: SEE PEARL RIVER DELTA
MADRID
Madrid: Rental Car Tour
MANILA
Manila: Rental Car Tour
MELBOURNE
Central Business District: Employment & Commuting
MEXICO CITY
Mexico City Index
Mexico City Population Trends by Sector from 1960
Mexico City: Rental Car Tour
Mexico City #2: Rental Car Tour #2
MINNEAPOLIS-ST.PAUL
Minneapolis-St. Paul Index
MSP Metropolitan Area Population Trends 2000-2004
Planning for Yesterday in the Twin Cities
MONTREAL
Montreal: Competitive Due to Suburbanization & Cars
Montreal: Rental Car Tour
MOSCOW
Moscow: Rental Car Tour
MUMBAI
Mumbai Index
Mumbai Population Trends: City & Suburb 1981-
Mumbai: Rental Car Tour
MUNICH
Munich Region: Change in Commuting: 1998-2006
NAGOYA
Nagoya Index
Nagoya: Rental Car Tour
Nagoya Wards Population & Density 1990-2000
Nagoya Business Districts: 2001
Nagoya: Transport Share by Mode
House Size, Ownership & Detached Housing 2003
NEW ORLEANS
Post Hurricane Population Estimate
New Orleans: Rental Car Tour
NEW YORK
New York Index
New York: 1.2 Million Residents Leave in 5 Years
New York Employment & Commuting: 2000
New York Employment & Commuting: 2006
Historical Densities: New York, London, Paris, Los Angeles
Density Profile: Hong Kong, Tokyo & New York

Manhattan Wards: Population & Density: 1800-1910
New York Community Districts Density 1970-
New York & Boroughs: Population & Density 1790-
New York Urban Area Population & Density from 1800
New York: Rental Car Tour
Levittown: Rental Car Tour
OKLAHOMA CITY
Oklahoma: Poised for Growth
OSAKA-KOBE-KYOTO
Osaka-Kobe-Kyoto Index
Osaka-Kobe-Kyoto: Rental Car Tour
Osaka Wards: Population & Density 1990-2000
Kobe Wards: Population & Density 1990-2000
Osaka Loop Population & Housing
Osaka-Kobe-Kyoto Business Districts: 2001
Osaka-Kobe-Kyoto: Transport Share
House Size, Ownership & Detached Housing 2003
PARIS
Paris Index
Paris Population History from 1365
Paris Urban Area Population & Density from 1807
Paris Arrondissements: Population From 1860
Paris Urban Area Analysis from 1921
Paris Urban Area from 1962
Historical Densities: New York, London, Paris, Los Angeles
Paris, Petite Couronne & Former Seine Dept. Population
Paris: Rental Car Tour
PEARL RIVER DELTA
Guangzhou Index
Hong Kong & Shenzhen Index
Shenzhen Index
Pearl River Delta Overflight
Dongguan: Rental Car Tour
Hong Kong Population & Density by District
Density Profile: Hong Kong, Tokyo & New York
Guangzhou Population & Density District
Apple Daily Oped on Hong Kong Rail Expansion
Dongguan: Rental Car Tour
Guangzhou: Rental Car Tour
Hong Kong: Rental Car Tour
Hong Kong II: Freeways, Suburbs & Junkyards
Macau: Rental Car Tour
Shenzhen: Rental Car Tour
PERTH
Perth Public Transport Ridership from 1961
Central Business District: Employment & Commuting
PHILADELPHIA
Philadelphia Urban Area Population & Density from 1900
Philadelphia Growing Faster than San Francisco
PHOENIX
Phoenix Land Market Analysis
Phoenix: Not as Sprawling as You Think
PORTLAND (OREGON)
Portland (Oregon) Index
Smart Growth & Housing Affordability: 8 Market Analsis
Work Trip Market Share by Work Location
Portland: Worst Housing Affordability Loss: 1990-2000
Portland Urban Growth Boundary Baloons: Chartbook
Portland Metropolitan & CBD Employment
Portland Urban Growth Boundary Stops Growth
American Dream Boundaries: Atlanta v. Portland
Portland's N.W. 23rd: Not a Model
Los Angeles Double Portland Density
Travel Market Share from Before Light Rail
Work Trip Share From Before Light Rail
RIO DE JANEIRO
Rio de Janeiro: Rental Car Tour
SAN FRANCISCO BAY AREA
Smart Growth & Housing Affordability: 8 Market Analsis
SAN FRANCISCO BAY AREA
Philadelphia Growing Faster than San Francisco
San Francisco Bay Area: Migration 2000-2004
SANTIAGO
Santiago: Rental Car Tour
SAO PAULO
Sao Paulo Index
Sao Paulo Districts: Population & Density
Why Can't Sao Paulo be Curitiba?
Sao Paulo: Rental Car Tour
SEOUL-INCHEON
Seoul-Incheon Index
Urbanized Land Area & Population by District
Seoul City Population & Density by District
Incheon: Population & Density by District
Seoul-Inchon: Rental Car Tour
SHANGHAI
Shanghai Index
Shanghai Population & Density District
Shanghai: Rental Car Tour
SHENZHEN: SEE PEARL RIVER DELTA
ST. LOUIS
St. Louis Urban Population & Density: 1850 & 1890
St. Louis: Rental Car Tour
STOCKHOLM
Stockholm: Urban & Suburban Population 1945-
SYDNEY
Sydney Urban Transport Market Share by Mode
Sydney Per Capita Travel Time More than Atlanta
Central Business District: Employment & Commuting
TIANJIN
Tianjin Index
Tianjin Population & Density District
Tianjin: Rental Car Tour
TOKYO-YOKOHAMA
Tokyo-Yokohama Index
Tokyo-Yokohama: Rental Car Tour
Tokyo Districts Population & Density
Yokohama Districts: Population & Density
Kawasaki Districts: Population & Density
Chiba Districts: Population & Density
Tokyo-Yokohama Business Districts: 2001
Tokyo Ku Area: Jobs & Population by District
Tokyo Yamanote Loop: Jobs & Population
House Size, Ownership & Detached Housing 2003
Tokyo-Yokohama: Transport Share
TORONTO
Toronto Index
Myths About Smart Growth and the Toronto Greenbelt
Toronto: Rental Car Tour
WASHINGTON, DC
Smart Growth & Housing Affordability: 8 Market Analsis
WUHAN
Wuhan: Rental Car Tour
XI'AN
Xi'an: Rental Car Tour
ZURICH
Zurich: Rental Car Tour
Zurich: Urban & Suburban Population 1930-
Zurich Districts: Population & Density

THE GREAT RECESSION
The Housing Crash and Smart Growth
Letter: Bank for International Settlements: Regulation & Risks
Causes of the Financial Crisis: Primer
Smart Growth's Role in the "Panic of 2008"
How Smart Growth Exacerbated the Intl Finl Crisis: Heritage
How Land Regulation Exacerbated the Int'l Crisis: Report
Housing Downturn in the US: Update 2009q1
Household Residence & Stock Value from 1925
House Price Increases & Subprime Mortgage Share
Smart Growth Bailout: The Mortgage Meltdown
The Panic of 2008: How Bad is It?
Housing Crisis Moves into Phase II
The Smart Growth Bail-Out
Housing Bubble: Learning from California
House Prices to Fall Further: Especially in California
What will Happen to the Dog Bakeries (& Starbucks)?
Financial Crisis: Bubbles Deflating World Wide
How Low Can House Prices Go?

UNITED STATES COMMUTING PROFILES: METROPOLITAN AREAS & URBAN AREAS
Commuting Profile Index
Portland Commuting Profile: 2006-2008
New York Area Commuting Profile: 2006
Chicago CBD & Urban Area: 2000
St. Louis CBD & Urban Area: 2000
San Francisco Bay Area CBD & Urban Area: 2000
Denver CBD, Tech Center & Urban Area: 2000
New York CBD & Urban Area Commuting Profile: 2000
Los Angeles CBD & Urban Area Commuting Profile: 2000
Austin CBD & University Public Transport Market Share: 2000
Austin CBD, University & Urban Area Commuting Profile: 2000
Portland CBD & Urban Area Commuting Profile: 2000
Seattle CBD & Urban Area Commuting Profile: 2000
New York Manhattan Public Transport Market Share: 2000
Portland CBD Public Transport Market Share: 2000
Seattle CBD Public Transport Market Share: 2000


Demographia Residential Land & Regulation Cost Index
AMERICAN DREAM: LOST IN METROPOLITAN AREAS WITH URBAN CONTAINMENT POLICY
The American Dream of home ownership has all but ended in some metropolitan regions. The Demographia Residential Land & Regulation Cost Index shows, for example, that new house costs have skyrocketed in San Diego and have risen strongly in Minneapolis-St. Paul, Portland, Seattle and Washington-Baltimore. Land and regulation costs remained at normal levels in 6 metropolitan regions, Atlanta, Dallas-Fort Worth, Houston, Indianapolis, Raleigh-Durham and St. Louis. MORE...

NATIONAL JOURNAL CITATION
The Public Purpose: One of Four Top Transport Internet Sites
In its 8 December 2001 issue, National Journal selected The Public Purpose as one of the top four transportation web sites. Also honored were two US Department of Transportation sites and the site of the Surface Transportation Policy Project. Demographia is the demographic Internet affiliate of The Public Purpose. The Public Purpose was again named one of the internet's best transport sites by National Journal in 2003.

WENDELL COX IN PARIS ASSIGNMENT
Visiting Professor in Transport & Demographics in 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008 & 2009
Wendell Cox (principal of The Public Purpose and Demographia) served as a visiting professor at the Conservatoire National des Arts et Metiers (CNAM) in Paris in 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006 and 2008. This French national university has approximately 80,000 students and grants degrees to the doctoral level. It is in the core of Paris (3rd Arrondissement) at the Arts and Metiers Metro station and was established in the former Abbaye de St. Martin-des-Champs during the French Revolution. Mr. Cox has presented seminars and classes on U.S. and international public transport, intercity rail (including Amtrak), freight transport and world urban areas in Paris and Le Havre and conducted research on French and European demographics and transport. He also lectured at the University of Paris Institute of Urbanism and Politecnico di Milano.

15th Annual Demographia International Housing Affordability Survey: 91 Major Markets, 2018: 3rd Quarter
ENDING THE HOUSING AFFORDABILITY CRISIS: TOWARD WELL FUNCTIONING CITIES
Australia . Canada . China (Hong Kong) . Ireland . New Zealand . Singapore . United Kingdom . United States
Alain Bertaud, of the New York University Marron Institute of Urban Management and former principal planner at The World Bank, describes urban planning tendencies deterring governments from allowing sufficient housing capacity to keep housing costs affordable, in his introduction to the 15th Annual Demographia International Housing Affordability Survey. Bertaud's new book, ( Order without Design: How Markets Shape Cities) calls for incorporating urban economics into urban policy, the failure of which has contributed mightily to the present international housing affordability crisis. The standard of living has been retarded and poverty increased in severely unaffordable markets. Bertaud summarizes the message of the Demographia Survey as "unaffordable housing is not an unavoidable fatality linked to economic success." For the 9th year a row, Hong Kong is the least affordable market, with a Median Multiple of 20.9 (median house price divided by median household income), the most unaffordable in the 15 years of the Survey. Vancouver (12.6) has displaced Sydney (11.7) as the second least affordable, followed by Melbourne (9.7), San Jose (9.4), Los Angeles (9.2) and Auckland (9.0). All of these severely unaffordable markets have developed in a local environment of urban containment regulation (before which, "affordable" Median Multiples of 3.0 or less were typical).

Media Release

14th Annual Demographia International Housing Affordability Survey: 92 Major Markets, 2017: 3rd Quarter
THE HOUSING AFFORDABILITY CRISIS: A MIDDLE-INCOME STANDARD OF LIVING CRISIS
Australia . Canada . China (Hong Kong) . Ireland . Japan . New Zealand . Singapore . United Kingdom . United States
London School of Economics Professors Felipe Carazzo, Paul Cheshire and Christian Hilber provide the introduction to the 14th Annual Demographia International Housing Affordability Survey. They note that "balanced assessment" of housing affordability requires "good measures." They further refer to Britain as "the originator of housing unaffordability" and the ideas of planning that have "contributed so much to the problem. " Indeed, the failure to retain well-functioning housing markets is a problem with widespread consequences. Where housing has become severely unaffordable, the standard of living has been retarded and poverty increased. This year's Survey shows that, for the 8th year a row, Hong Kong is the least affordable market, with a Median Multiple of 19.4 (median house price divided by median household income). Sydney is (again) second worst, at 12.9, followed again by #3 Vancouver at 12.6. San Jose (10.3), which is located in the San Francisco Bay Area has the fourth worst housing affordability and Los Angeles has the fifth worst housing affordability among the major markets. Before urban containment regulation, nearly all markets had housing markets that were affordable (Median Multiples of 3.0 or less).

13th Annual Demographia International Housing Affordability Survey: 92 Major Markets, 406 Total
BEST CITIES FOR MIDDLE-INCOME HOUSEHOLDS: WHERE HOUSING IS AFFORDABLE
Australia . Canada . Hong Kong . Ireland . Japan . New Zealand . Singapore . United Kingdom . United States
Dr. Oliver Hartwich of the New Zealand Initiative states the issue squarely in his introduction to the 13th Annual Demographia International Housing Affordability Survey: "High house prices are not a sign of city's success but a sign of failure...," He also asserts that, without the "slightest doubt," "unaffordable housing is almost everywhere and every time caused by the same factor: housing supply restrictions." This year's report examines "best cities" and "livable cities" such as regularly rated by The Economist, and others finding that more affordable cities from the Demographia International Housing Affordability Survey have better middle-income outcomes. Again, Hong Kong has the least affordable housing, with house prices 18.1 times households incomes. Sydney is again second least affordable at 12.2, followed by Vancouver at 11.8, which along with Toronto (7.7) saw house prices rise equal to annual household incomes in just one year. The 9 nation, 92 major housing market survey placed Auckland 4th at 10.0, followed by San Jose (9.6), Melbourne (9.5), Los Angeles (9.3) and San Francisco (9.2).

12th Annual Demographia International Housing Affordability Survey: 87 Major Markets, 367 Total
CONSENSUS BUILDING ON MIDDLE-INCOME HOUSING AFFORDABILITY CRISIS
Australia . Canada . Hong Kong . Ireland . Japan . New Zealand . Singapore . United Kingdom . United States
Senator Bob Day of the Australian Senate calls the economic consequences of present land use policies "devastating," in his introduction to the 12th Annual Demographia International Housing Affordability Survey. Noting that governments and central banks have been too quick to blame unprecedented housing affordability losses on demand factors and missed the "real culprit," the refusal of governments to provide an adequate and affordable supply of land for new housing stock to meet demand" (typically urban containment policy). Calling the crisis "wholly contrived" Senator Day calls it "a matter of political choice, not geographic reality", adding, "It is the product of restrictions imposed through planning regulation and zoning." This year, Hong Kong has the least affordable housing (Median Multiple of 19.0), followed by Sydney (12.2), Vancouver (10.8), with Auckland, Mlebourne, San Jose, San Francisco, London, Los Angeles and San Diego all exceeding Median Multiples of 8.0. In each of these markets, housing costs relative to incomes are triple or more their pre-urban containment levels. Many markets with liberal policies remain affordable, with Median Multiples of 3.0 or less.

11th Annual Demographia International Housing Affordability Survey (2014Q3)
MIDDLE-INCOME HOUSING AFFORDABILITY REQUIRES A PLENTIFUL AND AFFORDABLE LAND SUPPLY
378 Markets: Australia . Canada . China . Ireland . New Zealand . Singapore . United Kingdom . United States
Dr. Shlomo Angel of the Stern School of Business (NYU) Urban Expansion Project puts the issue simply in his introduction: where expansion is effectively contained by draconian laws, it typically results in land supply bottlenecks that render housing unaffordable to the great majority of residents. This is indicated in the 11th Annual Demographia International Housing Affordability Survey, which shows the least affordable markets to be those with highly restrictive land use regulations (typically urban containment). In Hong Kong, Vancouver, Sydney, San Francisco, and elsewhere house prices are up to triple previous levels (income adjusted). The Demographia Survey perspective is that first and foremost, public policy should seek a better standard of living and less poverty. Housing is the largest item in household budgets. Angel rightly notes that housing affordability depends on plentiful and affordable land.

10th Annual Demographia International Housing Affordability Survey
HOUSING AFFORDABILITY AND THE STANDARD OF LIVING: RESTORING GENUINE PRIORITIES
360 Markets: Australia . Canada . China . Ireland . New Zealand . Singapore . United Kingdom . United States
Alain Bertaud, of New York University and former principal planner at The World Bank urges planners to "abandon abstract objectives and to focus their efforts on two measurable outcomes that have always mattered since the growth of large cities during the 19th century's industrial revolution: workers' spatial mobility and housing affordability" in his introduction. He says that "benign sounding objectives usually become a proxy for imposing planning regulations that severely limit the supply of buildable land and the number of housing units built, resulting in ever higher housing prices." Noting the importance of environmental issues, but reminds that "they should be considered a constraint to be solved not an end in itself." The 10th Annual Demographia International Housing Affordability Survey Survey focuses on the pivotal role of housing affordability in achieving the universal policy priorities of higher standards of living and poverty reduction.

9th Annual Demographia International Housing Affordability Survey
HOUSING AFFORDABILITY: KEY TO ECONOMIC AND SOCIAL SUSTAINABILITY
337 Markets: Australia . Canada . China (Hong Kong) . Ireland . New Zealand . United Kingdom . United States
Hon. Bill English, Deputy Prime Minister of New Zealand writes in the Introduction that Land has been made artificially scarce by regulation that locks up land for development. This regulation has made land supply unresponsive to demand. When demand shocks occur, as they did in the mid-2000s in New Zealand and around the world, much of that shock translates to higher prices rather than more houses. This summarizes how urban containment policies ("smart growth" or "urban consolidation") raises house prices, reduces discretionary incomes and impedes the quality of life (while increasing poverty). The 9th Annual Survey chronicles the imperative for restoring housing affordability.

8th Annual Demographia International Housing Affordability Survey
PRESERVING THE IDEAL OF A PROPERTY OWNING DEMOCRACY
325 Markets: Australia . Canada . China (Hong Kong) . Ireland . New Zealand . United Kingdom . United States
Least Affordable: Hong Kong, Australia, New Zealand, UK, Hong Kong, Vancouver, Sydney

Prof. Robert Bruegmann notes that Residential real estate plays a huge and increasingly important role in the economy of every nation. He continues that a growing number of people who have looked at the figures have tended to agree that a good many well-meaning policies involving housing may be pushing up prices to such an extent that the negative side-effects are are more harmful than the problems the policies were intended to correct. This 8th edition shows improvements in many markets, but some, like Hong Kong, Vancouver and Sydney continue to be exhorbitantly expensive. The association between higher house prices and more restrictive land use regulation is clear, as is the conclusion that urban consolidation or smart growth is incompatible with affordable housing.

7th Annual Demographia International Housing Affordability Survey
HOW OVERLY RESTRICTIVE LAND-USE POLICIES DENY HOME OWNERSHIP
325 Markets: Australia . Canada . Ireland . New Zealand . United Kingdom . United States . China (Hong Kong)

Renown author Joel Kotkin notes that even after the bursting of the housing bubble implosion, house prices have risen well above incomes, in his introduction to the 7th edition. Kotkin cites markets such as Los Angeles, San Francisco, and New York, adding that: perhaps most remarkable has been the shift in Australia, once the exemplar of modestly priced, high quality middle class housing, to now the most unaffordable housing market... He disputes "progressives" who wrongly claim that dense urbanism is the preference of the next generation... He says this promotes a form of neo-feudalism which reverses the great social achievement of dispersing property ownership. Kotkin concludes that: The ideal ... should not ... be affordability alone but affordability coupled with economic growth and that broad based middle class prosperity depends in large part on housing affordability, and may do even more so in the future.
Media Release . Research Summary: Smart Growth & Housing Costs

6th Annual Demographia International Housing Affordability Survey
PLAN-DRIVEN LAND USE REGULATION: MAKING HOUSING UNAFFORDABILITY PUBLIC POLICY
272 Markets in Australia . Canada . Ireland . New Zealand . United Kingdom . United States

Dr. Tony Recsei, President of Save Our Suburbs (SOS) in Sydney writes home ownership has been a source of boundless opportunity in his introduction to the 6th Edition. He says that urban planning policies are poised to reduce home ownership to nothing more "but a dream as vast numbers of young people and the underprivileged will never be able to raise a family within the security of their own home. Dr. Recsei systematically rebuts the notion that sustainability requires densification and concludes Unless we are vigilant, high-density zealots will do their best to reverse centuries of gains and drive us back towards a Dickensian gloom. This year's edition highlights the continuing deterioration of housing affordability in Australia and improvements in the United States, where values driven up in the housing bubble in some markets have returned to near the historic norms. Further, the Survey describes the process by which plan-driven land use regulation (growth management, urban consolidation, compact city policy or smart growth) makes land for housing development unaffordable and as a result places housing affordability beyond reach.
Media Release . SOS Media Release

5th Annual Demographia International Housing Affordability Survey
THE UNACCEPTABLY HIGH HUMAN COSTS OF SMART GROWTH & URBAN CONSOLIDATION
265 Markets in Australia . Canada . Ireland . New Zealand . United Kingdom . United States

Dr. Shlomo Angel, of Princeton University and New York University, one of the world's leading experts in urban planning writes in the preface to this 5th Annual Demographia International Housing Affordability Survey< that ...the current efforts to contain the pace of the outward expansion of cities for one reason or another are, at the very least, open to serious question. Referring to land use regulation, he continues: The more stringent the restrictions, the less is the housing market able to respond to increased demand, and the more likely house prices are to increase. And when residential land is very difficult to come by, housing becomes unaffordable., This report describes the economic connection between that "smart growth"/"urban consoldiation" policies (prescriptive land use policies) and the unprecedented house price escalation that has occured in recent years in some markets. Moreover, the consequences have expanded well beyond housing. Without prescriptive land use regulation, the housing bubble in the United States would have been less severe; without a severe housing bubble, the US mortgage meltdown would not have occurred and without the US mortgage meltdown, the international financial crisis might not have occurred. It will be important to reform land use policies to prevent similar damage from occuring in the future. - -

SMART GROWTH ASSOCIATED WITH RADICALLY HIGHER HOUSING COSTS IN THE UNITED STATES
Costs of Sprawl Forecast Misses by a Mile

It has been claimed that smart growth would reduce housing costs. A $13,000 (2007$) decline in new residential unit costs was predicted for 2000 to 2025 in Costs of Sprawl --- 2000, for markets with smart growth (prescriptive planning) compared to responsive planning systems. At this rate, a reduction of nearly $4,000 would have occurred between 2000 and 2007. The reality was starkly different. In just seven years, median house prices rose more than $160,000 in prescriptive planning areas relative to prices in markets with responsive planning.

PENNSYLVANIA'S EFFICIENT TOWNSHIP GOVERNMENT
Study Shows Smaller Governments Have Far Lower Costs per Capita
In this report commissioned by the Pennsylvania State Association of Township Supervisors, Demographia shows that the Commonwealth's smaller local governments have by far the lowest costs per capita, even when attributable spending is added and spending financed by state and federal sources is subtracted. This conclusion is in opposition to the "conventional wisdom," which is that larger governments are more efficient. In fact, the only "economies of scale" in larger governments are for special interest, which are able to exert control over larger government organizations with less effort and expenditure than would be necessary to control a myriad of smaller local governments. At the same time, smaller local governments are more effective because they are "closer to the people."

NEW YORK'S EFFICIENT TOWN GOVERNMENT
Study Shows Smaller Governments Have Far Lower Costs per Capita
In this report commissioned by the Association of Towns Of New York, Demographia shows that the Commonwealth's smaller local governments have by far the lowest costs per capita, even when attributable spending is added and spending financed by state and federal sources is subtracted. This conclusion is in opposition to the "conventional wisdom," which is that larger governments are more efficient. In fact, the only "economies of scale" in larger governments are for special interest, which are able to exert control over larger government organizations with less effort and expenditure than would be necessary to control a myriad of smaller local governments. At the same time, smaller local governments are more effective because they are "closer to the people."

THE HEAVY PRICE OF SMART GROWTH AND URBAN CONSOLIDATION

4th Annual Demographia International Housing Affordability Survey
Former Reserve Bank of New Zealand Governor Donald Brash writes in the introduction to this 4th Annual Demographia International Housing Affordability Survey that "the affordability of housing is overwhelmingly a function of just one thing, the extent to which governments place artificial restrictions on the supply of residential land." This report describes the economic consensus that "smart growth"/"urban consoldiation" have destoyed housing affordability in many urban areas. The scarcity produced by smart growth and urban consolidation markets has serious social and economic consequences. The resulting asset bubble has interfered with economic policies of central banks, as in the US and New Zealand. Yet, in responsive markets, housing affordabilty remains robust, including the three fastest growing large markets in the high income world, Atlanta, Houston and Dallas-Fort Worth and in other Canadian (such as Ottawa) & US markets.

SMART GROWTH & URBAN CONSOLIDATION: INCOMPATIBLE WITH HOUSING AFFORDABILITY
3rd Annual Demographia International Housing Affordability Survey

The unprecedented housing affordability crisis is worst in Australia, where years more income are now required to buy a home than just 10 years ago. Ireland, New Zealand and the United Kingdom have also become seriously unaffordable. Some markets in the United States and Canada are also severely unaffordable, especially on the Pacific Coast and in Northeast. Strong affordability continues in many markets, such as Atlanta, Dallas-Fort Worth, Houston, Winnipeg, Ottawa, Quebec, Indianapolis Cincinnati and Kansas City. This edition includes a comparison of Perth,, Australia and Austin, Texas, similarly fast growing markets, but where the differences in housing affordability are like "night and day." The distinguishing feature is regulation --- smart growth and urban consolidation are associated with severe housing affordability losses.

HOUSING AFFORDABILITY CRISIS: CAUSE NOT MICROECONOMICS
2nd Annual Demographia International Housing Affordability Survey

Some economic analysts have attempted to blame the housing affordability crisis on demand or low interest rates. The reality, however, is that some of the most affordable housing markets (examples are Atlanta, Dallas-Fort Worth and Houston) also have the highest demand. The same low interest rates have been available both in the unaffordable and the affordable markets and cannot therefore be the cause of the housing affordability crisis. This Second Annual Demographia Housing Affordability Survey provdes a detailed examination of the issues behind the present structural and spotty housing affordability crisis.

BLUEPRINT 2030: MOBILITY AND ACCESS FOR ATLANTA
Traffic Congestion Can be Reduced: The First Step is to Try
In this report, Wendell Cox and Alan Pisarski show that Atlanta's intense traffic congestion, unusual for a low density urban area, is principally the cause of underinvestment in suburban roadways. Rejecting, the "maternity wards increase the birthrate" logic of " d demand," they show how the Atlanta area can improve its traffic flow, saving people time and improving economic efficiency. While the casual visitor to Atlanta may think the urban area well served by wide freeways, coverage of the urban area is sparse. In fact, Atlanta has the greatest extent of suburbanization in the world unserved by cross-town (lateral) freeways. Further, the area has a substandard arterial (non-freeway) road system. Nonetheless, significant improvements can be made with expenditures that are well within the capability of the local economy. Atlanta's continued growth could well depend upon it.

AMERICAN DREAM THREATENED: BLACKS, HISPANICS AT GREATEST RISK
Growing Smart: Planners Would Confiscate Homes Not Consistent with Their Plans
The American Plannning Association has developed a legislative guidebook containing model legislation which, if enacted would increase the price of housing, with the impact falling most heavily on lower income households, which are disproportionately African-American or Hispanic. Other provisions could force confiscation of houses where subsequent zoning changes render a use non-conforming. The model legislation is based upon the planning doctrine of smart growth, which like a previous planning doctrine, urban renewal, will make urban areas less attractive places to live.

SMART GROWTH: DELUSION, NOT VISION
Wendell Cox Closing Statement at Railvolution Conference
On December 1, Wendell Cox and Congressman Earl Blumenauer (D-Oregon) debated smart growth and transit at the annual Railvolution conference in San Francisco. Wendell Cox's closing statement is reproduced here.

BADGE OF HONOR
Wendell Cox Placed on Sprawlwatch List
Wendell Cox and others are highlighted as opponents of the anti-sprawl movement. Cox stated that placement on the list was a "badge of honor." but that Sprawlwatch would have more correctly characterized those on the list as "pro-choice" with respect to urban development --- that people should have the freedom to live and work where they like.

WENDELL COX OPED IN THE ATLANTA CONSTITUTION
Portland Not Sprawl Free: Atlanta Needs Other Policies
Despite Atlanta's reputation for severe traffic congestion and low densities, Wendell Cox shows that the Atlanta area scores generally better on measures of transit use than Portland, which has gained an international reputation for policies intended to increase transit ridership and urban density. His conclusion is that Portland's policies would not solve Atlanta's traffic problems any more than they have Portland's.

WENDELL COX OPED IN THE WASHINGTON TIMES
A Straitjacket on Growth
New urbanist and so-called "smart growth" policies promise to slow economic growth where implemented and could limit job creation and business expansion. Limitations on new "big-box" retailers is likely to limit job growth in construction trades and related industries. The telecommunications revolution and the expansion of regional jet service could erode the competitiveness of larger metropolitan areas, in combination with new urbanist and so-called "smart growth" initiatives. Smaller metropolitan areas are likely to benefit, as they welcome the growth turned away by metropolitan areas like Portland, Oregon.

RESPONSE TO REPORT BY DAVID RUSK
Keeping Kalamazoo Competitive: The Husock Report
This report by Howard Husock of the John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University and Wendell Cox challenges the findings of the Kalamazoo County Compact by David Rusk and recommends competition based measures to improve the competitiveness of Kalamazoo.


Latest News and Analysis
URBAN CONSOLIDATION & SMART GROWTH: DESTROYING THE UNIVERSAL DREAM
How U.S. Land Use Regulation Exacerbated the International Financial Crisis: Heritage Foundation
How Smart Growth Exacerbated the International Financial Crisis: Report (20080428)
USA Housing Affordability & Net Domestic Migration
Television New Zealand Interview: "Spotlight on "NZ's Housing Crisis": Hugh Pavletich
Smart Growth & Housing Affordability: 8 Market Analsis: ATL DFW IPS KC BOS POR SD WDC
Sydney & Dallas-Fort Worth: Starter House Cost Comparison
Australia Joint Housing & Development Industries Statement: Land Release, Fees, Process the Problem
Smart Growth Raises Prices: NZ Government Report | New Zealand Housing Affordability Overview
Demographia Submission to the NZ Housing Affordability Parliamentary Inquiry
Australia: Prime Minister, Treasurer, Reserve Bank Governor Cite Urban Consolidation (Smart Growth) Land Rationing
The Great Australian Dream Project | Boulevard of Broken Dreams: AFFORDABLEHOME.com.au
NZ Report: Affordability Loss: Not Enough Land |
NATIONAL/ INTERNATIONAL
REPORTS
NEWS
COMMENTARY
Urban Planning and Economics: Research
How Planning is Destroying Housing Affordability: International Library
Urban Consolidation & Smart Growth: Destroying the Great Australian Dream
Urban Consolidation & Smart Growth: Destroying the Kiwi Dream
Smart Growth & Regional Planning: Destroying the American Dream
Smart Growth & Regional Planning: Destroying the Canadian Dream
Town Planning: Destroying Housing Affordability in the UK
Town Planning: Destroying Housing Affordability in Ireland
Performance Urban Planning Website

Demographia is "pro-choice" with respect to urban development.
Absent a material threat to other people or the community,
people should have the freedom to live and work where and how they like.
DEMOGRAPHIA and THE PUBLIC PURPOSE
are undertakings of
WENDELL COX CONSULTANCY
P. O. Box 841 - Belleville, IL 62222 USA
Telephone: +1.618.632.8507
Contact Us
Demographia is Affiliated with The Public Purpose, Twice A Top National Journal Internet Site
DEMOGRAPHIC
BRIEFS
URBAN TOURS BY
RENTAL CAR
NEW & REVISED
ITEMS
THE EVOLVING
URBAN FORM
CONTACT
US
(c) 1999-2023 www.demographia.com --- Wendell Cox Consultancy --- Permission granted to use with attribution.