Where People Live? And how to help them decide?

I have been thinking about how people decide where to live. In some ways, as affluence is increasing, people have become more selective about where they live. I am not sure, if the traditional factors of commute time is the only factor people use today, as was the thinking till a decade ago.

Somebody mentioned a statistic that I was surprised to hear. It said that today 70% of white collar work happens in non co-located teams. Which means people no longer work with people in the next cubicle or down the hall. This also means that people are no longer chained to their desks.

This has meant that there is more flexibility in where people choose to live and it is no longer tightly coupled with where they work. Families with kids ofcourse focus on living next to schools and neighbourhoods that are safe and good for the kids. Families with no kids, which are an increasing number year over year, locate based on their non-work related pastimes. Such people locate near theatre and art districts, outdoor getaways and urban parks.

An interesting book I read a little while ago was Who's Your City?: How the Creative Economy Is Making Where to Live the Most Important Decision of Your Life where the author actually describes how these decisions are being made by people of different walks and in fact the criteria is changing on a day to day basis.

All this factors into how real estate companies need to allow home buyers and renters to find properties online. It should allow people to select what is important to them in terms of walking distance to cultural centres, schools with a certain rating, neighbourhood safety and so on, and finally average commute time to the work place.