The Fizzled Vision for a "Megapolitan" Sun Belt

Tony Davis of the Arizona Daily Star calls it the "lost decade"; the folks he interviewed expect that the downturn will last 5-10 years and then result in a modest recovery in the housing market. Davis talks with Robert Lang, a sociology professor at the University of Nevada-Las Vegas:

"Lang was a bit more optimistic, saying that while the region could endure a "lost decade," it may be more like a lost half-decade if now-depressed housing prices in Tucson and Phoenix begin to make the region seem like a bargain to people living elsewhere.

"Phoenix boomed and busted, but that left the region a real bargain compared to Southern California," said Lang..."