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Health & Fitness

Urban Living is Gaining Steam

The age of moving out to the country may nearly be over.  It seems that a demand for more urbanized living has been created.  There are likely many reasons for this phenomena but several points are worth looking at.

Family size - While family size has trended downward for quite sometime, todays family size tends to have 1 to 3 children.  The trend for many years was to have a home that contains 2,500 square feet or more.  Today this size home is almost impossible without building/rebuilding a home upward.  Many people are now looking for comfortable living arrangements containing 2,000 square feet or less.

Convenience - There is no doubt that city living does come with many benefits that you don’t get from suburban living, such as the convenience of being able to walk to just about anything you want from your home; shops, cafe’s, Laundromats…you name it and you can walk to it. That has actually been the point of the urban movement all along; to incorporate every possible amenity and convenience along with employment and schools all within walking distance.

Gas prices - nearly everyone I have talked to says that gas prices are too high and the appeal of less driving has now become a need.  Those same people indicate they want a healthier lifestyle by being able to walk or ride a bike to get what they need.  More people seem to be interested in buying food fresh from a small grocer or produce center as opposed to driving to the mega store and shopping for entire weeks worth of food.

Baby boomers - The baby boomers are now living longer and healthier than their parents and grand parents did.  The need to be close to shopping and meeting with friends while walking to their destination is definitely growing.  Like most people, the recession has hurt the pocket book and for most they can't buy that second home to live in away from home.  I think we will see services become available for a generation of people who once wanted to live further away but now have a need for independent living and having amenities close by.

There are many advantages of living in an urban setting.  The need to move outward seems to have been curtailed by the need enjoy a more simple lifestyle with less time in the car.  Places like Berkley, Birmingham, Clawson and Royal Oak seem to have a higher demand  than any other surrounding suburban neighborhoods. 

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