Reply to DC housing priorities and the dearth of 'family housing'

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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]^^My point is, why/when did development 'stop' building new ""family"" houses?[/quote]

Until the last 15 years, DC was losing residents at a steady clip. Many of those that left were families who headed out to the suburbs leaving their row houses behind. I would argue that there is no shortage of family housing in DC as a whole. In fact, as I drive around my corner of NW and NE, there are row houses such as you described as far as the eye can see. [b]The issue at hand isn't supply of family-friendly housing, it's supply of affordable family-friendly housing in desirable areas.[/b] However, with land being as expensive as it is, there is no incentive for developers to build row houses when they can build luxury apartments, particularly in the city center. Apart from financial considerations, many urban planners would argue against the wisdom of building single-family housing in the areas where these condos are going up. The buzz word these days is "density."

Your best bet is to look a bit further afield. There are many lovely neighborhoods throughout the city that provide solid housing stock and short commutes. They might just be places you didn't think you would want to live 10 years ago. The city is changing rapidly, you could be making a really smart investment.

P.S. -- As a lifelong Washingtonian, I beg you not to root for the local football team. It's not good for your sanity.[/quote]

Actually that's not quite it. There are plenty of family-friendly homes in desirable areas... 3-4br homes in Cleveland Park, Tenleytown, Capitol Hill, etc. Heck, there are even some rowhouses in Logan Circle and Dupont that haven't yet been split into condos.

It's just that all of those homes are very expensive. The problem is lack of[b] affordable[/b] homes for families in desirable (i.e. safe, access to good schools) neighborhoods. This is just a problem that is created by the overall low level of supply in DC compared to high demand.[/quote]

Oh, sorry, I just noticed that you also included the "affordable" qualifier, so we're saying the same thing.[/quote]

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