The Future of Cities: Housing Unaffordability – How We Got There and What to Do About It

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From the end of World War II until 1970, owner-occupied housing was broadly affordable across the entire country. The standard measure for measuring affordability —the price-to-income ratio— was at about 2.8 in 1950, 2.5 in 1960, 2.6 in 1970, 3.4 in 1980, and 4.2 in 2020. This meant that, to a large extent, factors other than housing, such as climate, amenities, and job and economic opportunities, drove migration, which builders were in a position to respond to. However, as shown in Table 1, a number of met-ros on the coasts now have much higher ratios today, evidence that supply has not kept up with demand.

This book is being published as a series, with permission of the American Enterprise Institute. Each week a new chapter will be published, with links to each chapter.

Click or tap a link below to read or download each chapter. (PDFs open in new tab or window)

Housing Unaffordability: How We Got There and What to Do About It – Tobias Peter and Edward J. Pinto (new this week)


Tobias Peter is the director of research of the AEI Housing Center.

Edward J. Pinto is the director of the AEI Housing Center.

Read the Series:

Introduction: Welcome to the Urban Future – Joel Kotkin

I. The Big Picture for Global Geography

American Aspiration is Metropolitan – Ryan Streeter

The Urban Future: The Great Dispersion – Wendell Cox

The Future of the Big American City is Not Bright – Samuel J. Abrams

II. The Variety of Urban Experiences

The Future of Chinese Cities – Li Sun

Africa's Urban Future – Hügo Krüger and Bheki Mahlobo

Recalibrating Expectations: Lessons from Youngstown, Ohio – Sherry Lee Linkon and John Russo

Indianapolis – Aaron M. Renn

The Texas Triangle: An Emerging Metropolitan Model in the Lone Star State – J. H. Cullum Clark

The Evolution of New York City Politics – Harry Siegel

California's Inland Empire: Harbinger of the New Multiracial Suburb – Celia López del Río and Karla López del Río

III. The Policy Agenda

Housing Unaffordability: How We Got There and What to Do About It – Tobias Peter and Edward J. Pinto