Dismantling D.C.'s Myth of Unaffordability

We've heard a lot recently about Washington D.C.'s affordable housing crisis. So how could it be that a recent report would list the city as among the most affordable in the country?

"First and most importantly," says Pearce, "adjust for average income levels. Then, factor in transportation costs. Using that formula, the D.C. region is tops among 25 American metro areas in a new study from the Center for Housing Policy and the Center for Neighborhood Technology that looks at the ability of moderate-income households to shoulder the burden of housing and transportation costs [PDF]. The notoriously pricey Boston and San Francisco also make it into the top six."

"Measuring affordable living by looking strictly at housing costs, without including transportation, 'tends to mislead people,' said Scott Bernstein, president of the Center for Neighborhood Technology, in a teleconference yesterday. Gathering this information comprehensively, he said, 'has profound implications for a set of policy choices.'"