June 5th, 2007 9:19 AM by Ron Mastrodonato
The 2007 Member Survey, conducted by NAR researchers, looks at many characteristics of Florida Realtors, including business activity; income and expenses; office and firm affiliation; and demographic characteristics.To view the entire study, downloadable in PDF format, go to floridarealtors.org and click on “FAR Market Research” under Quick Links.© 2007 FLORIDA ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS®
Development, measured by the foot?NEW YORK – May 23, 2007 – New Urbanists maintain that homeowners are more likely to abandon their cars if neighborhood blocks are shorter than 600 feet. However, a new study by the RAND Corp. that looks at the Congress for New Urbanism’s New Urbanism Smart Scorecard and the 1995 National Personal Transportation Survey reveals that other design elements are more likely to encourage pedestrianism.According to the research, residents are more likely to walk if the streets are designed in a grid pattern and have four-way stops. Neighborhoods with mixed-use zones featuring four or more types of businesses are also more likely to attract pedestrians.The study indicates a jump in pedestrianism in communities with more than 14 residential units per acre but found more people willing to walk in communities with seven units to 11 units per acre than those with 11 units to 14 units per acre.Rob Boer of the RAND Corp. notes, “We will need to examine whether these [criteria] have to be done in concert in order to have a big impact on walking. We also need to explore whether people who are interested in walking may seek out certain types of neighborhoods.”Source: Builder (05/07) Vol. 30, No. 7, P. 44; Sullivan, Jenny© Copyright 2007 INFORMATION, INC. Bethesda, MD (301) 215-4688