Foreclosing the Dream (ebook)

Argumento de Foreclosing the Dream (ebook)

Winner of the 2010 Outstanding Academic Title sponsored by the American Library Association's Choice Magazine

That America entered a profound housing crisis in 2008 is well known. The wave of foreclosures that began to sweep the nation has had radical economic effects. But the force, ramifications, and implications for communities across America have never been spelled out as clearly and thoroughly as they are in Foreclosing the Dream.

As he did in Tomorrow's Cities, Tomorrow's Suburbs, William H. Lucy has taken a clear-eyed and meticulous look at the latest data and found lessons that the mainstream discussion has overlooked—particularly with regard to the spatial and demographic implications of the housing crisis. The housing market did not collapse uniformly, and the pain has not been felt equally in all age groups.

Planners, public officials, activists, students, and others will benefit from Lucy's analysis of the real shape of the crisis, for what happens next will reflect these inequities. Lucy pulls no punches in this taut, readable assessment of what the crisis will mean for the shapes of our exurbs, older suburbs, and central cities. No responsible planner or housing professional can afford to miss this book.

Housing foreclosures are the tip of the iceberg in William Lucy’s tale of a brave new metropolitan future. Historic changes in housing development, revitalization of the central city, new demographic changes, and global warming all play crucial parts in the coming transformation. Offering a sweeping vision, Foreclosing the Dream is a planner's comprehensive guide to future metropolitan development, showing us how to fit together the many changes that might seem unrelated. -Dowell Myers, professor of urban planning and demography, University of Southern California

Experience is now showing that the foreclosure challenge is varied and nuanced—ranging from predatory loans to option ARMs (often accompanied by limited documentation and optimistic underwriting) to the more current situation of job losses, income reductions, and falling values. This book recognizes the breadth of that challenge and presents many useful solutions for meeting it. ?Conrad Egan, President and CEO, National Housing Conference

William H. Lucy is the Lawrence Lewis Jr. Professor of Urban and Environmental Planning at the University of Virginia. He is the author of Close to Power: Setting Priorities with Elected Officials and (with David L. Phillips) Tomorrow’s Cities, Tomorrow’s Suburbs, both published by APA Planners Press.0