Wednesday, May 13, 2020 / by Steve Curtis
At least regarding buying a house, the New Normal is not the Old Normal with masks
And here is why.
And the way our culture evolved over the decades and how we as a culture and individuals have answered those questions are now all up for in the air... and all of those answers impact housing in very crucial ways... and through housing and the way we work in post COVID envrionments we will see significant shifts in all manner of city, suburban and country life.
This blog will examine and expand on these questions, answers, and repercussions over time. I will not be dwelling on the negative aspects of the epidemic specifically, which are endless. Rather, I will analyze the realities of the housing and work shifts and how they may positively impact the market place.
Pulling the first layer of the onion back, the literally overnight shift of virtually all office workers who could work from home out of their offices, had a huge ripple effect. The consequences of that were instantaneous in the drop in traffic, the drop in air pollution, the drop in noise pollution (I did not anticipate this one). Also instantaneous was the need for a place to work somewhere in their home... I mean , my god, 4 people sharing a small apartment to be close to work are now sharing a 42" round table in the kitchen on separate zoom meetings all day... give me a break. Or the couple with their 2.4 children who now find all of them stuck at home 24/7 in a 3 bedroom house with no place to work or study or get away from each other.
- The very definition of "Quality of Life" has changed
- The ability or necessity to work from home changes almost everything
- Access to Transportation
- Need for space to work, and where, changes
- The Definition of Work may change
- Work hours
- Family hours
- Recreation hours
- Social Interaction, whether face to face or remotely ... the how, the where and the when have all changed
- Where we eat and when
- How we exercise and with who, let alone when and where
- What is defined as entertainment
- Is it a solitary event or what?
- How do we meet other people?
- The Economics of Living - priorities have changed
And the way our culture evolved over the decades and how we as a culture and individuals have answered those questions are now all up for in the air... and all of those answers impact housing in very crucial ways... and through housing and the way we work in post COVID envrionments we will see significant shifts in all manner of city, suburban and country life.
This blog will examine and expand on these questions, answers, and repercussions over time. I will not be dwelling on the negative aspects of the epidemic specifically, which are endless. Rather, I will analyze the realities of the housing and work shifts and how they may positively impact the market place.
Pulling the first layer of the onion back, the literally overnight shift of virtually all office workers who could work from home out of their offices, had a huge ripple effect. The consequences of that were instantaneous in the drop in traffic, the drop in air pollution, the drop in noise pollution (I did not anticipate this one). Also instantaneous was the need for a place to work somewhere in their home... I mean , my god, 4 people sharing a small apartment to be close to work are now sharing a 42" round table in the kitchen on separate zoom meetings all day... give me a break. Or the couple with their 2.4 children who now find all of them stuck at home 24/7 in a 3 bedroom house with no place to work or study or get away from each other.
