Two years after The Great Recession officially came to a close, housing prices have dropped to their lowest levels since 2006. A Standard & Poor’s/Case-Shiller report showed the home price index dropping 4.2 percent last month, aided in part by the growing number of foreclosures, and a reluctance on the part of new buyers. Daniel Martin, an economist with the Economist Intelligence Unit, said that part of the problem is the vacant homes that sit across the country. He estimates that 1.5 million houses are sitting vacant across the country. But what happen do all of these empty homes do to the American psyche? What does it mean to live around such emptiness?
For the answer, we speak with Thomas Sugrue, history professor at the University of Pennsylvania and author of “The Origins of the Urban Crisis.”
The World is an independent newsroom. We’re not funded by billionaires; instead, we rely on readers and listeners like you. As a listener, you’re a crucial part of our team and our global community. Your support is vital to running our nonprofit newsroom, and we can’t do this work without you. Will you support The World with a gift today? Donations made between now and Dec. 31 will be matched 1:1. Thanks for investing in our work!