White Flight, etc (split from Perceptions of Raytown)

[grovester]

If you don't want white flight to occur in your neighborhood, don't flee. If you don't want there to be a run on your bank, don't pull all your money out. Self fulfilling prophesy.

[chaglang]

Carry on with that chip on your shoulder.

[pash]

.

[pstokely]

So...if any of you owned a home in a neighborhood that was seeing a drop in value due to a changing demographic, and the house you owned was nice, but not the "place of your dreams", would you stay there or sell? Would you try to protect your investment or stay and watch your dollars evaporate?

No, I would not begin the self-fulfilling prophesy of reduced home value by being scared of minorities and getting out of my house for less than it's worth to avoid them. Isn't that what really causes the phenomenon?

I am perplexed that some of you keep throwing up the race card. Race is not the concern for most people. The concern is the lowered home value due to many factors. Lowering home values means a new demographic is moving in, typically with lower expectations for property maintenance, less supervision of teen children, less desire/time to participate in community benefit activities (PTA, etc). Race is not the motivating factor these days, but I do think that a transition in race is an obvious indicator that things are changing and a wake-up call to assess what is happening in the neighborhood. You make it sound like everyone is this a racist, when I really think it is more about being a “classist” (scared of people in a lower income class).

I recently talked to a dad that teaches in Center S.D. They recently moved from Center to Shawnee Mission because he was concerned how little the parents in the Center district participate in PTA or parent-teacher events. He thinks the district is a good one, but that the families are not trying very hard to be involved. He didn’t want that environment for his kindergartener, so they moved over. He was very clear to say it was not a race thing and more a quality of family structure that he wanted to get away from. I think that is often the case in lower economic areas and this is one thing people don’t care to live around and invest time and money into.

people don't have time to be involved in the PTA when they're working two minimum wage jobs, lower income usually means less education, they might just send their kids to school for the free or cheap day care for 3/4 of the year

[aknowledgeableperson]

If you don't want white flight to occur in your neighborhood, don't flee. If you don't want there to be a run on your bank, don't pull all your money out. Self fulfilling prophesy.

Of course, you bought a stock at 10, it is now dropping and is at 5, and there is a chance the company goes into bankruptcy. Do you sell?

people don't have time to be involved in the PTA when they're working two minimum wage jobs, lower income usually means less education, they might just send their kids to school for the free or cheap day care for 3/4 of the year

Yes, there are some people who are like that. And they still find some time to take an interest in the education of their children. And there are some stay-at-home moms (or dads) that don't get involved in the education of their children. What one should look at is the overall involvement of parents in the education of children. I have two granddaughters that attend an elementary school in Grandview SD. Over half of the students qualify for free lunch etc. But when there is an activity that the parents can get involved in there is an abundance of parents/grandparents there to witness/participate.

It is nice to be an idealist and say people should do this and/or not do that. But until you are actually faced with the situation and have to walk in somebody else's shoes don't be so easy to condemn someone who takes an action contrary to what you think you would do.

[grovester]

I consider my neighborhood to be one of those that are "getting darker". Older hood, turning over, home prices falling or stagnant. Most folks moving in are upgrading themselves, while the overall income/age demographic falls. While there are some desirable homes, there are a lot that are pretty basic and aging. My house is paid off so I really don't worry about current prices. When/if I ever sell, the money is all mine. People need to quit looking at their houses as cash generators. They're LONG TERM investments that you get to live in.

If there is a slide in the hood, it will be over the next 20 years. Completely unlike a stock.

[aknowledgeableperson]

If there is a slide in the hood, it will be over the next 20 years.

For you and your neighborhood that may be the case. But for someone else facing a little bit different situation they may not want to wait until a slide happens. Do you sell when someone rents a house out to a drug dealer? Or do you wait until there is a murder on the street two doors down from your house? Or instead of firecrackers going off at New Years there is gunfire? Of course that isn't the only time you hear gunfire.

Hopefully there isn't much of a slide in your neighborhood. For the most part wholesale "white flight" is a thing of the past. Are there white folks who still have some prejudices within them? Yes, afraid so. But I guess if black families can decide to move into my neighborhood for whatever reason they choose then I have that freedom also.

Completely unlike a stock.

You bought up bank run so I brought up stock.

[grovester]

Completely unlike a stock.

You bought up bank run so I brought up stock.

My comparison had more to do with fear mongering and mob mentality.

[aknowledgeableperson]

Which has more to do with the past (50's, 60's, early 70's) than the recent past. Even you have stated 20 years for your neighborhood. Although some small sections changed fast in the Hickman Mills area (mostly due to actions by HUD) the change was quite gradual, probably over a span of 20 to 25 years.

You wanted to talk about herd or mob mentality, I was bringing it to a more personal level which seems to fit how neighborhoods turn over now.