Will gas prices drive buyers downtown?
This article was originally on a blog post platform and may be missing photos, graphics or links. See About archive blog posts.
My colleagues over at the Bottleneck blog posted an interesting item today asking if rising gas prices will make downtown real estate look more attractive:
‘We’ve been hearing this for awhile -- mostly from developers. Suburban residents will move into urban areas because they can’t stand their commutes anymore. There’s been much debate about whether this is true. But the Wall Street Journal reports that gas prices might be doing what traffic could not:
‘Abandoning grueling freeway commutes and the ennui of San Fernando Valley suburbs, Mike Boseman recently found residential refuge in [Pasadena]. His apartment building straddles a light-rail line, which the 25-year-old insurance broker rides to and from work in Los Angeles...’ ‘
The Associated Press has a similar story, reporting, ‘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.’
More, from the A.P.: ‘On Wednesday, a survey of 900 Coldwell Banker agents showed a remarkable 96% said that rising gas prices were a concern to their clients, and 78% said higher fuel costs are increasing their desire for city living.’
One more, from LosAngelesGasPrices: The average price of a gallon of regular unleaded in L.A. is $4.61 Wednesday, up from $4.60 Tuesday.
Your thoughts? Comments? E-mail story tips to peter.viles@latimes.com.
Photo: Los Angeles Times