San FranYuppyland?

San Francisco's rapid loss of low and middle-income residents is taking a toll on the city's social fabric.

1 minute read

June 23, 2008, 11:00 AM PDT

"It's urban flight flipped on its head: The number of low- and middle-income residents in San Francisco is shrinking as the wealthy population swells, a trend most experts attribute to the city's exorbitant housing costs.

Many worry it's increasingly turning San Francisco into an enclave of the rich, where nurses, firefighters, cops, teachers and other professionals aspiring toward homeownership or in need of cheaper rent can no longer afford to stay.

'A kind of derogatory term for the city would be Disneyland for yuppies,' said Hans Johnson, demographer with the Public Policy Institute of California. 'There is a legitimate public policy concern when a city that many people have lived in for many years and regard as their homes becomes so expensive they can't afford to live there anymore.'"

Thanks to Richard Bono

FULL STORY: Exodus of S.F.'s middle-class

Sunday, June 22, 2008 in The San Francisco Chronicle

Housing Social / Demographics Urban Development California Gentrification Affordable Housing Yuppies View More

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