Building the New America: Report on trends shaping the migration of people and jobs

Report: Building the New America

How do we build a new urban model for America — one that is better aligned with the aspirations of most Americans? This newly released report examines the housing trends that are driving today's migration of people and jobs.
Houston Employment Forecast 2020

Three perfect days in HTX, growth forecasts, increasing our density, reducing homelessness, protesting property taxes, and more

The Greater Houston Partnership has released its 2020 Employment Forecast.  Only time will tell if their vision is 20/20... (sorry, couldn't help myself! ;-)

California Preening: Golden State on Path to High-Tech Feudalism

by Joel Kotkin — “We are the modern equivalent of the ancient city-states of Athens and Sparta....” declared then-governor Arnold Schwarzenegger in 2007. In truth, the Golden State is becoming a semi-feudal kingdom, with the nation’s widest gap between middle and upper incomes—72 percent, compared with the U.S. average of 57 percent—and its highest poverty rate.
leaving california sign along highway

Charles Schwab Moving San Francisco HQ to Texas

by Joseph Vranich — The brokerage firm Charles Schwab announced today it would acquire TD Ameritrade in a $26 billion deal and will move its headquarters from San Francisco to the Dallas-Forth Worth area.

Midwest Success Stories

by Aaron M. Renn — My latest report has just been released by the Manhattan Institute. It’s called, “Midwest Success Stories: These 10 Cities Are Blooming, Not Rusting.” It’s a look at 10 cities in nine states in the greater Midwest that are doing well economically and demographically.

Cities, Suburbs, and the New America

by SMU Video — SMU-Cox Folsom Institute for Real Estate, the SMU Economics Center, and the Center for Opportunity Urbanism presented a lively discussion on Cities, Suburbs, and the New America, and Minorities, Immigrants, and Millennials in America’s Favorite Geography.
San Joaquin county aerial photoWendell Cox

The Expanding and Dispersing San Francisco Bay Area

by Wendell Cox — This decade has witnessed an unprecedented expansion of the Greater San Francisco Bay Area (the San Jose-San Francisco combined statistical area or CSA), with the addition of three Central Valley metropolitan areas, Stockton, Modesto and Merced. Over the same period, there has been both a drop in the population growth rate and a shift of growth to the Central Valley exurban metropolitan areas.

California’s Man-Made Power Outages

by Ronald Stein — The public has strongly supported Obama-era regulations, which rewrote forest rules and guidelines nationwide. In California, man-made power outages are one result.

Forced Upzoning is Bad Policy, But Here’s How We Can Mitigate Its Impacts

by John Mirisch — A number of bills in California's legislature attempt to “solve” the state’s housing challenges by overriding local municipal zoning ordinances and allowing developers to build up to Sacramento-mandated levels of density. The most notable of these bills is SB50, which has no provision for affordable housing, but espouses a “trickle-down” theory that building market-rate (i.e. luxury) housing will “filter” down to create more affordable housing.
Greater Los Angeles area aerial view

Greater Los Angeles Area Growth Tanking and Dispersing

by Wendell Cox — For decades, there has been substantial dispersion of population in Greater Los Angeles (Los Angeles combined statistical area or CSA), as the suburban areas outside the urban core have dominated population growth.

Organic Urbanism is the Cure for New Urbanism

by Douglas Newby — Organic Urbanism works with people’s preferences, particularly those of families. It protects, preserves, and nurtures the city, allowing the creativity of individuals and neighborhoods to shape the direction of the city.