ON THE MARKET
The Changing Market
The coronavirus pandemic has changed housing from the Bay Area to the Capital Region
BY Dave Tanner
SHUTTERSTOCK ILLUSTRATION
There have been many changes brought about by the coronavirus pandemic . Some will likely disappear quickly when it is over , and many of us can ’ t wait to meet friends inside a restaurant for a relaxing dinner . But other changes will be with us much longer , and some may be permanent .
One of those long-term changes is housing . Some changes are because the motivating forces behind them are of a lasting nature . Others are because the purchase of a home is far different from the purchase of a dinner ; we will not be buying another house again tomorrow . The decisions we make today regarding the purchase of a home will be with us for the foreseeable future .
One of the first housing impacts occurred in the Bay Area . Even before the pandemic sent employees home to work , thousands of people with jobs in the Bay Area lived in the Capital Region . Many rented a room or a small apartment in the Bay Area to live in during the week and returned to their families on weekends . With the onset of more people working remotely to reduce the spread of the virus , many have given up those rentals . This has significantly increased the vacancy rate for rentals in the Bay Area as well as placing downward pressure on the cost of rent
24 comstocksmag . com | January 2021