Are You a Gentrifier?

[kittensaver]

Defined as a middle or high income person moving into/living in a traditionally working class or lower class neighborhood. Yanno, to class up the place . . .

You can find out here:

www.slate.com/articles/business/moneybox/2015/07/gentrification_calculator_are_you_a_neighborhood_gentrifier.html

It will be interesting to see where YMer's fall . . . especially since many folks here have built their wealth by living on the financial low-down (as opposed to KUWTJ).

Well, are you?

[yogiii]

It is accusing me of being one.

[mojothehelpermonkey]

I am not a gentrifier, but I think I will soon be gentrified out of my neighborhood. A vegan fast food place is opening down the street .
My rent is still pretty reasonable, but if I ever had to move out of my apartment, I could not afford to stay in this neighborhood. I am okay with that though. I have lived here for about 10 years and enjoyed it, but the gentrifiers are really starting to crowd the place.

[Cookies Galore]

Nice, it's telling me I'm not. We are being priced out of our current town and are hoping to buy in the next town over before they get hit with revitalization.

[HoneyBBQ]

Apparently. If you need to gentrify a neighborhood where the houses are 750k+++........

[Tiny]

It sez I'm a 'gentrifier' - but it doesn't seem to care that I've lived in my house for 18 years and my city for 50 years.   I'm very comfortable living with "poor people".  

I would have thought that a 'gentrifier' would be someone with a high income who moved into an area with a lower household income, etc in the recent past - say 5 years or fewer...

 

[haapai]

According to the app embedded in the article, I'm not.  Needless to say, this confuses the heck out of me.  I ride a bike to work.  I walk the dog everywhere.  I wish that the supermarket had better sushi.  I love the local bookseller/coffeehouse.   How can I be this queer and spending money locally and not be a gentrifier? 

[The Captain]

Yep.  I looked at how it defines thing and I guarantee the averages the next town (same county) over are wayyyy higher than my area.

[gs11rmb]

"your neighborhood is too rich to be gentrified."

Huh .... so why does my daughter's elementary school receive Title I support?

[Bonny]

LOL, I got this:

"You aren't a gentrifier because your income is less than the median income of your county for your household type ($99,849). In other words, you aren't wealthy enough to be a gentrifier."

We were when we moved to this town 25 years ago. Now we're too poor!

Just read something this morning that the median house price for my county is $950k

[Cookies Galore]

I got the same "income is less than the county median for household type" message ($93k and change). Way to rub it in.

[cktc]

Yes I am. If I move pretty much anywhere else in the metro area I wouldn't be because apparently I like wealthy neighborhoods.

[resolution]

It claims that I am, which seems silly when I am one of the poorer folks here on the forum.

[t-dog]

Nope, according to the app my neighborhood is "too rich to be gentrified."  

[cktc]

Jul 30, 2015 14:14:50 GMT -5 Bonny said:

LOL, I got this:

"You aren't a gentrifier because your income is less than the median income of your county for your household type ($99,849). In other words, you aren't wealthy enough to be a gentrifier."

We were when we moved to this town 25 years ago. Now we're too poor!

Just read something this morning that the median house price for my county is $950k

The calculator is tougher on DINKs. When I decided to count my embryo as offspring, all of a sudden I was once again worthy of sipping lattes and doing yoga in the nice neighborhoods.

[souldoubt]

According to the calculator yes but I live in a county with 3M people that has some of the most expensive zip codes in the state/country while also having some very poor areas as well.  Houses where I'm at start at about 8x the median household income.  It's an area that epitomized the subprime crisis where home prices have appreciated (not quite to pre-bubble highs) that has priced people who grew up here out of the market.  Basically with the current market unless you make big bucks or inherit a house it's not likely you'll end up buying here any time soon.  So by the definition of the calculator yes but my income still makes it hard to get into a house here.   

[justme]

I am, but my country and city are pretty large and have a lot of poorer parts. As for my zip code some of it is the middle of posh downtown where most make a lot of money but also includes some of the ghetto that balances out. The part I am in is pretty gentrified already.

[NastyWoman]

Jul 30, 2015 13:45:09 GMT -5 yogiii said:

It is accusing me of being one.

 and I think this thing sucks donkeyb*lls. I would not be able to afford a place in my neighborhood, nor could I afford to rent one similar to what I own so how could I possibly be a gentrifier? And no, I did not buy at the bottom of the market after the crash.

[MarleyKeezy78]

Nope. We live in a nice neighborhood and the median income is $118,000. DH makes around $75,000. We're too poor, lol!

[HoneyBBQ]

Jul 30, 2015 14:14:50 GMT -5 Bonny said:

LOL, I got this:

"You aren't a gentrifier because your income is less than the median income of your county for your household type ($99,849). In other words, you aren't wealthy enough to be a gentrifier."

We were when we moved to this town 25 years ago. Now we're too poor!

Just read something this morning that the median house price for my county is $950k

You're bringing down the neighborhood!

[busymom]

Nope, not me.

However, when DH & I were first married, we moved in the poorest neighborhood we could find where it was safe after dark so we could save money for our first house. So, maybe back then...

[jeep108]

"You aren't a gentrifier because your income is less than the median income of your county for your household type  In other words, you aren't wealthy enough to be a gentrifier."

This is what I got.  We made $65k and the median income for our zip code is $71K

[Malarky]

I needed another $100,000 income to qualify as a gentrifier.

I could never afford to buy in this town again.  I bought my house in 1994.

[The Captain]

DH and I have one kid, so we don't qualify as DINKS.

No judgement here, but I find it curious that in every area we've ever lived in, we would be considered gentrifiers.

[sarcasticgirl]

clearly, I'm too poor! 


No, you aren't a gentrifier.
You aren't a gentrifier because your income is less than the median income of your neighborhood for your household type ($119,369). In other words, you aren't wealthy enough to be a gentrifier.

I have no idea how people in my neighborhood afford houses on 120k/year. one of my favorite houses in the area is relatively modest... but was last sold for almost 1.5 million. It is a 4BR house under 2000 sq ft. I've looked at real estate, and we'd be lucky to find a 2br condo for less than 350K. 

There is a nice 7BR for sale though, i've had my eye on it... just 7.5 million! 

[quince]

Ack. I read the wrong part. 
ETA: Yes, by about 10%. Gasp!

[haapai]

Those of you who have just been called riffraff might take some solace in the knowledge that app will tell you that you don't make enough money to be a gentrifier before it tells you that your town is too wealthy to be gentrified.   When I lie about my income, I discover that the median income for singletons in this town is too high for a singleton to be considered a gentrifier. 

I feel a little better knowing this but I'm still irritated enough that I'm gonna blow off mowing the lawn and pedal down to the microbrewery instead. 

[Robert not Bobby]

Always pick the worst house on the best street in a good neighborhood...if you don't have money to buy where you want to buy.

Neighborhoods in "transition" may be in transition for decades.

[Tiny]

Jul 30, 2015 13:51:34 GMT -5 Tiny said:

It sez I'm a 'gentrifier' - but it doesn't seem to care that I've lived in my house for 18 years and my city for 50 years.   I'm very comfortable living with "poor people".  

I would have thought that a 'gentrifier' would be someone with a high income who moved into an area with a lower household income, etc in the recent past - say 5 years or fewer...

 

GEEP... I just looked at the prices on rehabbed (gutted then made into an open floor plan with a second story added) houses that just went on the market last week a few blocks from my house... and they are asking 300K for each of them.
I'm not 'living with the poor people' -- I AM THE POOR PEOPLE Not sure i could (or would want to) afford a 300K house on my salary...

Could be my area's gentrifying -- but we dont' have a Starbucks or a Whole Foods or even a yoga studio... there's is a Costco in the neighboring suburb though...

[NastyWoman]

So after @haaoii post I went back and pretended I am not single.  And guess what? As a single person I am a gentrifier by far out-earning the area average income, as a "family with kids" I am 15% below the area income for a family.  Now can someone please tell me where I can get a single's discount on my next home?