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Fuel Prices Shift Math for Life in Far Suburbs
Peter S. Goodman, New York Times
Suddenly, the economics of American suburban life are under assault as skyrocketing energy prices inflate the costs of reaching, heating and cooling homes on the distant edges of metropolitan areas.
Just off Singing Hills Road, in one of hundreds of two-story homes dotting a former cattle ranch beyond the southern fringes of Denver, Phil Boyle and his family openly wonder if they will have to move close to town to get some relief.
… “Living closer in, in a smaller space, where you don’t have that commute,” he said. “It’s definitely something we talk about. Before it was ‘we spend too much time driving.’ Now, it’s ‘we spend too much time and money driving.’ ”
Across the nation, the realization is taking hold that rising energy prices are less a momentary blip than a change with lasting consequences. The shift to costlier fuel is threatening to slow the decades-old migration away from cities, while exacerbating the housing downturn by diminishing the appeal of larger homes set far from urban jobs.
In Atlanta, Philadelphia, San Francisco and Minneapolis, homes beyond the urban core have been falling in value faster than those within, according to an analysis by Moody’s Economy.com.
… economists and real estate agents are growing convinced that the rising cost of energy is now a primary factor pushing home prices down in the suburbs, particularly in the outer rings.
More than three-fourths of prospective home buyers are now more inclined to live in an urban area because of fuel prices, according to a recent survey of 903 real estate agents with Coldwell Banker, the national brokerage firm.
Some now proclaim the unfolding demise of suburbia.
(25 June 2008)
Kunstler vindicated.
Four years of gains in home prices wiped out
Rex Nutting, MarketWatch
Home prices across 20 major U.S. cities have dropped a record 15.3% in the past year and are now back to where they were in the summer of 2004, according to the Case-Shiller home price index released Tuesday by Standard & Poor’s.
Prices in the 20 cities are now down 17.8% from the peak two years ago.
… Home prices surged in 2003 through 2006, climbing by a cumulative 52%, according to Case-Shiller. Since then, however, the housing and credit bubbles have burst and homeowners have given up half of their gains from earlier in the decade.
Falling prices have eroded Americans’ wealth, cutting into their ability to borrow against the equity in their homes or refinance or sell for a profit. Millions of Americans now owe more on their homes than they’re worth.
(24 June 2008)
Manufactured Landscapes is as good as they say
JMG, Grismill
Obviously I need to watch movies faster. Almost a year ago today I posted about wanting to watch Manufactured Landscapes, featuring the work of photographer Edward Burtynsky, mainly shot in China. I finally got around to it.
Not only is the movie visually arresting, but it is very, very disturbing.
Surprisingly to me, the sparse narration includes a pretty good description of peak oil.
The filmmaker, Jennifer Baichwal, shows some incredible aerial shots of a ginormous highway octopus interchange and Burtynsky talks about what he calls his “oil epiphany” while he was driving one day, when he realized that nearly everything surrounding him was made from or derived from oil — the plastic steering wheel, the paints on the car, the asphalt, the auto glass (heated with oil), etc. etc. He said we’re either at peak oil or nearing it, and we simply won’t be able to get the oil we’re used to having (all this while incredible footage is going by).
That follows scenes of shipbreaking in Bangladesh, some of the most feudal-looking work imaginable, including young men scraping bunker oil out of the holds of these giant ships while dressed in rags.
Sobering movie.
(27 June 2008)
Living Life in a Travel Trailer
M.D. Creekmore, The Survivalist Blog
I will admit, living in a 26′ camper has presented challenges I had not thought a lot about before I made the move. The interior looked open and roomy enough upon first inspection, but after moving into the 1996 Gulfstream, it seems to keep getting smaller with every new item I bring though the door. But this is to be expected when living in a space of this size. On worm days with the door open and the sun shining though, the trailer seems as open as the world outside, but on cold days with everything closed up tight, it can seem as small as a shoe box.
One of the first things I did after moving the trailer to the property, was to go to the local junkyard and buy a junked out Ford van for $75 bucks. After moving the van to my new homestead, I set it upon blocks and built shelves down both sides to use for extra storage, keeping clutter in the trailer to a minimum. A little dark green pant and the whole thing matched the surrounding countryside quite well.
I adding more storage space by burying an old refrigerator in the ground under my trailer, on it’s back with the door facing up. The only part visible is the top of the door and about five inches of the body. I dug this hole under the trailer, cut out a three foot door in the skirting, now I have a small root cellar that I can use to store extra produce and other foods. Total cost $0.00, only the time needed to dig the hole to bury the thing. I am currently considering putting in another one.
Don’t own a lot of stuff. If you don’t need it sell it. Find a place for everything, and keep things clean. Anything lying around and out of place will seem like a huge mess, when living in this small area. I know you don’t want to hear this but keep all the dishes clean and put away, nothing looks worse in this small space than a sink full of dirty dishes.
Sell your desk top computer. After deciding to do this, the first thing I did was sell my big bulky desktop computer, and bought a used notebook model. Same thing with the TV, I sold the one I had and bought a smaller one with the DVD player built in. Like I said you will need to downsize your life, but you need not do without or live in squalor.
My next project, is to build a roof over the trailer. The plan is to build something like a shed, with all four sides open, supported by steel beams concreted into the ground, without the roof ever touching the trailer. Sort of like a carport, just bigger and wider so part of the roof will do double duty as porch. The roof will also keep rain and snow off the trailer and act as a partial windbreak.
Knowing what I know now, my biggest regret is not doing this sooner. I am happy in my little paid for homestead. This my not be for everyone, but if you have a desire to get away or to live a more self-reliant life style but have little money to do it with, the travel trailer homestead could be the best way to go.
(6 April 2008)
More in the same vein at M.D. Creekmore’s Survivalist Blog.
