Overpriced? No kidding

Of all the places to live in the United States, I have to live in the most expensive county in the whole country, according to Forbes magazine. The article is in The Salem News.

Local real estate agents and others are dubious about the data that led Forbes magazine to rank Essex County as the most overpriced place to live in the country.
The magazine, which went on sale yesterday, scored Essex County at No. 1, saying it has the highest cost of living, lowest salaries, least job growth and least affordable housing.

These combined factors placed Essex County as the “most overpriced place to live,” despite its median home price of $373,750, according to the article. In comparison, San Francisco ranked No. 2 and has a median home price of $720,400; San Jose, Calif., is the third most overpriced at $746,800; and Honolulu comes in at No. 4 with $625,000.

Of course, the local chamber of commerce and real estate agents disagree, because if they didn’t they would lose business. But the listing makes sense. Real estate costs are out of this world. It’s unlikely Melanie and I will be able to buy a whole in the area, but there are lots of poor people, especially in Salem, living in overpriced tenements. Property and other local taxes are crippling, income taxes (which affect the whole state, admittedly) are ridiculous as well.

Despite the so-called anti-snobbery laws requiring so-called “affordable” housing, the reality is that this only benefits the poor, so while the rich—including the DINKs (Dual-Income No Kids) who commute into Boston every day—can afford the overpriced houses and condos and the poor can move into the 40B housing, the middle class, including young families, are forced out.

Of course, the liberals interviewed for the story want Nanny Government to get more involved by passing more laws and regulations, missing the point that this is what is a partial cause for the problem in the first place. What they should do is reduce taxes and regulation, giving the middle class more income and reducing the burden of property ownership.

Thus, Massachusetts as a whole is a sinking ship, with more and more middle class families moving out and away, leaving a giant hole in the economy. A collapse can’t be too far away.

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