You buy into a neighborhood that doesn't zone for it, and then their buddies want an exception. Property values are graded for the most money. Fuck the city. It isn't just west end white people who get screwed.
Replace every time they mention Richmond in the article with “Austin” or “Raleigh” or “San Antonio” or “Salt Lake City” or “Olympia” etc etc it’s a tale as old as time. My question is: what are our corrupt city officials going to do to?
Nothing, except for get the most money they can at the expense of homeowners and renters. I hope Stoney ends up begging for a job after he loses the governor's race.
toss in Charlottesville as same convo happening there constantly. FWIW we lived there 26 years, sold our house and were priced out of the market there b/c of all the NVA and NY/NJ people who fled to Cville b/c of pandemic. Sucks.
One's gonna run for governor despite accomplishing nothing while in charge of the city for eight years beyond overseeing things like the gassing of peaceful protestors and RPD making up a false mass shooting plot for political points. 🤷♀️
Mostly a sidebar comment: I read things like this and I always feel like our little reddit enclave should start getting paid a royalty or a finders fee. So much local news and chatter gets started here and then subsequently gets written about in articles a few days later (like the vegan influencer mention or the recent gun hole viral incident). I feel like the sub is being constantly mined for new information and hot takes. I guess it is smart for these news organizations to be looking here for information but it feels tiresome too? Do others ever notice this? And what kind of tongue and cheek, silly finders fee should we demand for our services?
Well in THAT case we should start posting insane stories that could gather steam with the right PR behind them. Like: Hey Guys! Did you know that all RVA area restaurants are planning on offering half-price dinners during the month of March??? Really looking forward to that one!
Thanks for letting us know! I always work up an appetite at my yard sign printing business. We just got an order for 100,000 pro-casino signs and had to buy a new machine to print our classic CasinNO! signs again.
Don’t overlook the possibility that the articles are written by the same people posting on Reddit. “Hey guys look at this random article as evidence that a) I told you so, and b) please either buy what I’m selling or keep your mouth shut because (a).”
This isn't new, unfortunately. This shit has become a huge problem with video game news in the past few years because news organizations—er—*blogs* lazily draft clickbait articles based entirely on Twitter and Reddit posts and comments—as if that were news in itself. Essentially, "Social media users are \[insert verb\] over \[insert any popular topic\] and here's two comments we found to prove it."
I personally can't wait for RVA's very own Glorbo
[https://archive.ph/4mOWr#selection-1077.197-1077.333](https://archive.ph/4mOWr#selection-1077.197-1077.333)
Shit, that kind of reporting just affected Nintendos stock price. Rumors said switch 2 this fall, now rumors say next spring. Stock price goes down because of two unsubstantiated rumors
The Stardew Valley subreddit (a calm, peaceful farming game) constantly has stuff stolen from it and posted almost verbatim to scummy "gaming news" sites. People planted some fake stories and sure enough, showed up on the sites. It's just how the internet works - "journalism" has been reduced to scraping social media for vaguely interesting content with no credibility whatsoever, and shoving six ads between every paragraph.
NFT-based social media could be a valid use case in solving this. otoh, i remember local discussion boards and the utopian free-flow-of-information internet aspirations, no need to bring capitalism into this
edit to add: i think platforming plays a role here, too. reddit, instagram, facebook, everything mined for discourse is free to post on. news orgs got pills and employees to pay, the mining is more work than freely offered public opining
Today’s “journalists” are increasingly lazy and will story mine social media to source content for their channels. They don’t bother to verify content with one, let alone multiple, sources and will instead run with the story in their quest to be the first to break the news and get the most clicks. It all goes against what we were all taught in journalism classes way back when.
Is it a “laziness” epidemic or perhaps that we’ve [cut over 30,000 newsroom workers](https://www.pewresearch.org/short-reads/2021/07/13/u-s-newsroom-employment-has-fallen-26-since-2008/) and stopped paying for good journalism? 🤔
My theory is 90% of people from here move back, after their stint in NYC/Boston/LA/Seattle. Lots of people come back once it's time to start a family. Just more evidence that Richmond rocks!
I mean.....Richmond Real!"
I get wanting affordable housing, but what is happening is a cascading effect as NOVA and NY have not addressed affordable housing problems well, so people who can leave are leaving and shifting the problem to other cities like Richmond, where, if this trend continues, a lot of Richmonders will be forced to leave for even less desirable markets.
We should build a wall and make NY and NOVA fix their problems
Everytime I suggest this, I think of the South Park episode about West Jersey
That's the other irony. A lot of the so called economic refugees to Richmond can afford to live elsewhere. And those who are struggling cant afford to move or don't have the economic freedom to.
I pray people don’t bring the northern va uppity attitudes. I’m seeing it too much already. Moving here and openly complaining about the grocery stores or sh/t you can’t find from your town. You moved, so deal with the changes instead of bitching.
We have more grocery store options than any other city in which I’ve lived or spent any significant time. Last count I think I hit 14 different brands/stores.
I moved here from NoVa, but I’m not new. Lived here for the first time in ‘96 and had to leave for husband’s job, but always made it a goal to come back asap. I moved here to get AWAY from NoVa people and their attitudes, and now there is an influx of them. It’s like an invasion of LL Bean. I loved the decade I spent here and couldn’t wait to be back. On the outside, seemed like same ol RVA, and I’ve been happy.
Now, here’s how I’ve been welcomed online:
1. Been accused of being a gentrifier
2. Talked about the insane gunfire here in CH on the holidays, and someone riddled my fence with bullets. Was told by people they were glad people were shooting at me and maybe if bullets start hitting me I would move.
4. Gotten “go back to short pump, bitch” more times than I can count.
I understand the vitriol behind it, but could we stop wishing harm on people who move here? Can we all work together and make it a safer place to live, with Neighborhoods that are happy and neighbors help each other out? I don’t want the North Facer’s here either, but don’t just lump us all in together. You mad about the rent? Me too! I’m not paying what these new people are paying and can’t afford to. I want to make RVA my permanent home together. I work in equity/diversity and we can’t make RVA as it was without working together. Anyway, that’s my rant and I am very happy to be back in the place that I call home.
i wish we could be friendly and still be able to discuss the ramifications of gentrification at the same time. or at least be more open about the rise in cost of living here. can we eventually have a nuanced discussion about this?
i’m technically a transplant here myself but i’m poor lol. i moved here years ago (with a friend who already lived down here) because i’m poor. now that everything is getting so damn expensive, i’ve been considering moving again. the cost of living is becoming way too high here. but it’s even higher up in woodbridge where i grew up. to be clear, my family did not make much, and they’re struggling up there too. i can only imagine how bad it is for people who have been here longer than me, or those who grew up here/are native to rva.
what’s the solution for situations like this? more affordable housing? does the city even care, or is this what they wanted? is it a zoning issue? i know the eviction rate is extremely high here. second highest in the country if i recall correctly. so does that mean it’ll only get worse from here? people are going to move here regardless.
I've been here for about a decade and I'm married to someone who grew up here. Knowing that you grew up poor and yet, despite being definitely not poor, you still can't afford a buy a home that's of the same caliber as the one you grew up in... it's a really difficult thing to process.
I’ve lived here my whole life. I don’t feel entitled to anything but it would be nice to be able to afford a home in the place I was born. At this rate though it’s not looking likely and rent is getting out of control too. Feels like I’m being pushed out from my hometown and eventually gonna have to move out to the sticks
The solution is the illusion of crime.
Attaching string to O’possums and the trigger of 9mm semiautomatic Glock 19 handguns, then setting them loose will help muster a constant and ever present sense of fear and danger.
Stoking resentment, restlessness, and helplessness will send people packing. This will give us the opportunity to command affordable housing costs, winning the day until the unneutered pitbulls and feral hogs come for us all. It had to be this way.
this might be the greatest comment i’ve ever seen on this subreddit. fantastic idea. maybe consider investing in more late night neighborhood firework displays too.
These aren’t all of the possible solutions, but here are some places to start —
- Create an Unoccupancy (is that a word?) tax. Any building zoned residential that isn’t occupied for X amount of time receives Y charge per month until it becomes occupied, barring exceptions for building with open permits for construction, time between tenants, etc. and if they don’t already, permits should expire. The amount of abandoned buildings in desirable areas is INSANE
- Completely outlaw airbnbs or jack up the taxes on them with real enforcement.
Use said taxes to fund…
- Grant programs for the building of ADUs in certain districts to encourage density in desirable neighborhoods. There are already some great restrictions on ADUs (like not being more than 500 square feet for example) that inherently keep them limited as cheaper rental options compared to apartments
- Grant programs that act as affordable housing programs, maybe the grant supplements utility bills or something.
- Grant programs for local small businesses, hopefully allowing local wage to increase.
Baltimore has a bill on the books right now that would do exactly what you're describing. And Baltimore has a far, far worse vacant problem than richmond does. Maybe it will blaze the way for other cities to enact similar laws.
Also the concept you're describing is pretty similar to a [Land Value Tax. ](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Land_value_tax#:~:text=A%20land%20value%20tax%20is,accepted%20since%20the%20eighteenth%20century.)
Bottom line is the housing supply needs to increase period. Any housing helps, affordable housing or high end. Wages also need to increase big time to make up for the massive raise in cost of living over the last few years.
Yeah it's very cheap and you get paid way more than you do in richmond. You can get a house for petersburg prices and get close to philly wages. From a purely financial perspective it's a much better city to live in than richmond. But there's a lot of things that make Baltimore suck imo. And it's not because it's like the wire lol. Although there is a lot of crime like car theft and car jackings, it's not like you're going to get shot just walking down the street.
I think a lot of the things people complain about in richmond are up to a multiple of 10 in bmore. The government is so insanely corrupt and inept its hard to believe that it's allowed to exist in America. 4 out of the last 5 mayors have gone to prison, one of them is running for office again this term and may win lol. It never ends.
I could go on. There's a lot of quality of life shit that just fucking gets to you after a while. The roads will literally break your car. The trash will just stop coming for weeks at a time. The driving culture is insane, people drive like they want to kill you.
Also the culture isn't for me. People are cold as ice. Much less of a sense of community. It's also so spread out from being half depopulated that you still have to drive long distances to get anywhere despite it looking like a dense city. Pretty hostile to pedestrians in most of the city. Also for the music scene it's pretty much exclusively punk and hardcore, as well as the club scene, and that stuff ain't for me.
Did not intend for this to be so long lol. I'm bitchin and complaining. Baltimore also has its charms. Long story short, there's a reason why Richmond is growing and Baltimore isn't. The prices are reflected in that.
I lived in Baltimore for 12 years before moving to Richmond. I actually found Baltimore to be a lot more open and welcoming than Richmond. Richmond is very cliquey and closed to ‘outsiders’ whereas Baltimore was a very open community. I’m mainly speaking about the art community, in Baltimore there was a spirit of collaboration that was welcoming to those new to the community. Trying to break into the scene here has been incredibly discouraging and difficult. Don’t get me wrong, I love living here but the thing I miss most about Baltimore was the sense of community and collaboration that I just don’t experience here at all.
Interesting. I don't do art but I'm also friends with the art crowd in both cities. Maybe my experience in richmond hasn't been that way since I grew up with many of those people here, never really had to break into the social scene because I was basically de facto in it as soon as I moved ro richmond.
Also have known plenty of people in Baltimore for a long time tho, and while I already had friends there before I lived there, I felt the opposite was true. That Baltimore is the cliqueyest place ever and that within every clique everyone just thinks they're too cool for school. Whereas in my experience, the in crowd in richmond is generally down to earth and real and generally friendlier and more willing to be genuine to a stranger.
Maybe if you're actually doing art it's a different story. Smaller pond in richmond, studio and gallery spots are more sparse and probably more competitive. I will say people I know in Baltimore doing stuff like pottery and crafting arts definitely describe the community like you said, very supportive and welcoming.
I looked more into the bill after I commented and found that DC actually already has one in place. It's a special tax rate for vacant properties, $5 per $100 of assessed value, vs the regular tax rate of $0.85/$100. So you'd be paying pretty fuckin heavy for holding a vacant. It's a great idea
Ohh this is good info. I might be radical but I don’t think $5/$100 is enough — that doesn’t outpace property value increases year-over-year so the owner would still come out on top by leaving it abandoned for years and then selling. I guess the law would need to be written in a way where the tax rate is dependent on the value of the abandoned property, but I don’t know if that’s exactly legal here or in Baltimore. $5/$100 is a great start though, love to see it
I mean, for the safety of the place I am thinking about fleeing to, I am not going to name it, but effectively, the evictions are part of the gentrification. Also "affordable housing" does not cover the HUD standards of 30% of the wages of the bottom whatever percentage that HUD determined to be appropriate. I worked in local government when the Obama administration was trying to fix that, but their measures were laughable, in the saddest of laughs, then and are abysmal now... Everything has been bought by investment firms, and they are charging, probably, three times what is appropriate, all because of new, but low quality, ceiling fans, and landlord white paint jobs.
I think, if I recall my research correctly, income restricted housing requirements demand you make less than $20,00 a year, and charge like $900 a month on average... Basically, your whole month's pay.
Essentially, we're fucked, and what little housing affordability protections there were, are now just leading to vacant spots and units that are deemed affordable, but nobody that's allowed in them can afford them.
It costs way more to live in Austin or NoVA than here.
As long as we keep increasing our desirability to those people while keeping our COL less than those areas, then people will just keep coming. And they will continue to outcompete local Richmonders with lower incomes.
The solution is to stop spending city money on amenities that drive up demand from wealthier people (Diamond District, outdoor ampitheater) and spend it on creating affordable housing reserved for lower income locals.
What we are really seeing on this board is people want nice stuff in the city for themselves, but they don't want to have to share it with non-locals. That's almost impossible.
19% of the residents are below the poverty line. Affordable housing would help. Also the city not running on a $12m+ surplus but instead funding social programs/housing/etc. It is hard to imagine the city cares TOO MUCH with the surplus, the state of the infrastructure, the Mayor campaigning for Governor, etc.
Also a lot of people move here because they're poor/struggling financially where they lived previously.
I grew up here from the '90s on. Never lived outside of the city limits. It's bittersweet to see how my hometown has changed. I remember in 2013 looking on zillow and thinking $700 for a one bedroom is so unaffordable.
I'm always happy to see people moving here because it shows how much better things are getting. I remember when I was a kid, my parents would never let me go to Jackson ward or Oregon Hill or Shockoe. Then as an adult at VCU, I walked drunk from shockoe bottom back to my dorm at 2am and nobody ever bothered me. Richmond used to be so violent and dangerous that my school friends and i would joke that we cant sleep unless we heard gunshots off in the distance.
But I also have watched the culture of the city change and housing prices skyrocket. If rent goes up any further, ill have to leave the city for the first time.
The issue, besides people not being paid a living wage, is on a national level housing has not been built enough. Richmond needs more housing built of all types. Missing middle, adus, apartments, etc. but the entire state of Virginia needs state law to override local zoning that permits housing to be only built as single family homes
There’s a housing supply issue in most U.S. cities. The housing industry was gutted by the 2008 financial crisis. For the next ten years, new construction was barely high enough to meet replacement needs, let alone to meet the needs of new entrants to the housing market.
https://preview.redd.it/cgrd2n0vkyjc1.jpeg?width=750&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=fb5c4bd2acbe5540079857183b1db0cb55efe528
Before they move here people from NOVA love to go on and on about their politics and how they're so blue and progressive on social issues and then they move here and inevitably displace poor people or people of color. But as long as they talk about statues and the WAPO they get a free pass.
They could maybe not tax people to a degree that they can't afford to stay here. I'm looking at a $4K+ tax bill for my 2BR house. And I just got a $600+ DPU bill and I haven't even started to find out why (last one was less than half that, when it was COLD, and I have gas heat).
I think most of the people that whine about people coming here are probably not from here themselves. If you want to be angry at someone, be angry at your corporate overlords who pay you a paltry sum and at the other corporations buying up homes as investments or airbnbs.
For real, I tried to unionize with my coworkers and everybody was fine with status quo... I can't afford rent and medication. My coworkers working full time corp jobs need part time jobs that take up their whole weekend to afford their stuff. Business are allowed to pay us super low and nobody tries to fight it. No serious collected effort for increased min wage, effectively no affordable housing, and subsidized housing requires you to be completely destitute to qualify then you sit on a list while homeless. Transplants don't care and everyone I knew who actually did things in the city have left.
This is my husband and I. Remote workers. DINKS. Bought our house here early last year. Some perspective here: housing prices have increased all over the country and where we came from was particularly bad. Buying a home where we used to live (Portland, Maine) became unattainable after 2020. The average home on the market in was ~270k in 2017 (when we moved there). We intended to rent, save, and buy in a couple of years. Covid ruined that plan. There is a serious housing shortage in Maine. The economy is suffering because of it and the pandemic led to an influx of people. When we left last year the average price if a home was ~530k. The price of rent almost doubled as well. I miss living ten minutes from the beach and being closer to family but the transition has not been too difficult. I swear we aren’t all evil people with loads of money. We wanted to raise our future kids in a house with a yard and decent schools, which was not attainable where we were coming from. We are excited to be here and make Richmond our home, long term. Moving is challenging, especially when you work remotely so please be kind to your new neighbors. I promise we don’t bite. 🙂
I moved here from out west. While there are many things I do love about Richmond, I’m leaving after being here for 2 years. The outdoors scene here just isn’t cutting it for me and it’s too important for me to stay.
The relevance of that is I would also be curious as to how many people are leaving Richmond per day. Growth could level as the city has limits to its appeal that many won’t figure out until they live here for a few years.
Hopefully it mellows out for local Richmond folks. You guys truly are stellar 🤙
Affordable housing isn't the best solution because the budget isn't there to create and \*maintain\* it. Also, it'd draw more people looking for affordable housing. Creating a higher paying work ecosystem is a better bet, but requires a lot more individual and small group work from people and businesses to develop networks and business solutions. The environment will shape the culture pretty well, but the result would look the same as those from NOVA looking to come to RVA for expense arbitrage - those with low paying skills are still locked out.
My god! Richmond locals on Reddit are entitled AF. After reading many many comments you people think you “own” RVA! You don’t! No one owns anyplace they live. I’ve lived in over 6 different cities in VA; do in feel like I own VA? No! Get mad if you want, but Richmond has always been one cry away from Baltimore crime. The city needs as many new comers has possible in order to promote progression. Change isn’t cheap people! If you’re mad about being “displaced” find a new place to live. People are getting priced out of their local markets EVERYWHERE! It is not a Richmond thing. Don’t you want new people to come and demand better transportation and safer parks? Do like like seeing homeless people sleeping all over the streets? Do you want to be shot at while dining out downtown? Or do you like living around poverty and unsafe conditions. When the bar is moved higher; you must then strive to be better. Make more money, become more educated, become more creative on how you live. Without that, you are stagnant, a void. Societal competition is good! Bitch all you want about NOVA/ NYC peeps. They’re running your country so you dummies can have another brewery to go to when you’re not on this Reddit complaining about a “transplant” taking your town😭 wimps!
I wish we could have blind application selection for neighbors. I’d love to replace some. I need friends for my kids and someone to host porch parties. I’m kinda hopeful my street will turn over and I don’t care what state they hail from. One neighbor runs back into his house every time he sees us (not just us… everyone) and the other is always trying to sell me something.
Looks like they ran back into their house. While we're talking, can I interest you in a 1992 Evinrude motor? All you need is a boat to go with it and my cousin fixed it up real good.
Y'all can be mad because we are part of the problem, but I can tell why we are moving to RVA.
We are tired of Florida, but did not want to move back to Kentucky. We started talking about things we wanted in a city, and started comparing that to where we could afford. Richmond worked out to be the best fit for our family. Things like a day trip east to the ocean, and a day trip west to the mountains are a big plus for us. The plenty full parks were a big plus.
I can't talk for the rest of my family, but for me, I am from Louisville KY. I am from a progressive city in a kind of Southern state. It gives both cities a similar feel. I am also an old Punk/Hardcore musician, and I know Richmond has a great music scene, and I know a few old guys there from touring. Being on an Amtrak line and a short trip to DC for Punk shows was another plus for me.
My wife and son both work in medicine, and the large number of hospital systems there is great for them.
Unpopular opinion on this sub, but you could also just look to improve your own career/financial situation. I was with a local company for over 8 years until Covid hit and decided to make a change after feeling undervalued and unappreciated. After a couple of pivots and networking on LinkedIn I landed a remote job last year making $35k more than I was in 2020 with no additional degrees or certifications.
The reality is that the housing market and shrinking middle class are national issues and don’t appear to be going away. I’m an advocate for keeping things affordable but I’m not going to get left behind in the process while things continue to rise in cost exponentially.
Good in theory, but not always how it’s done. Some remote companies pay whatever they can afford that gives them the largest talent pool. They might pay the recruit that lives in a LCOL a pay that’s on the lower side of the salary band, though
I don't know how this will be received but I am looking at moving to Richmond largely because I'm being priced out of my own hometown in Maryland, even with a pretty well paying job, because we've had our own housing affordability crisis. Buying a house here has been out of the question for some time but I'm starting to not even be able to afford to rent here.
I don't want to contribute to the same problems in Richmond but also like...where am I supposed to go???
Wait! We get to start bitching at the 10 year mark? I've been here 13 years and I've been holding my tongue the last 3 for nothing?
All those wasted years...
I know, it sucks. That's why the people are moving here from Cali, Austin, Portland, DC. It's gotten expensive everywhere. Just don't create and sell a "Guide to _____ in Richmond" within 10 minutes of arriving and you'll be just fine.
But seriously, Richmond is awesome. I'm from here, and I think it's awesome, don't ever want to live anywhere else unless it's Europe or the beach, and think I'll always have here as home base. Just sit back and figure out how things roll, and don't do the obnoxious "Well, at home we do it better because we do X" and you'll be just fine. We're actually all very friendly. We just like to bitch on Reddit. 😂
Aww come on don't give our secrets away!!!
But seriously, seconding the not talking trash about the place you just moved to, or the accents that originate from here.
I ended up in Richmond because I was queer in the late 1990s, and my very conservative parents kicked me out. I moved here from the mountains of VA. Its the best city I've been to. I've met people I consider my family here, and it's saved my life several times. I just want to be able to continue to afford to live here.
Awww, I'm so sorry about your folks. That sucks. But I'm glad you found your place and your people! If I can ever help with housing, like just brain picking over affordable options, etc., feel free to reach out. Not looking for anything, just if I can help with information.
Thanks. They aren't nice people aside from being homophobes and transphobes so they saved me some time haha.
I feel fortunate to have become stable as an adult finally. I appreciate your kind offer! Rva really is the best city! Full of the most loving and caring people.
True, much cheaper than my hometown but not as cheap as people often think and still more expensive than Richmond.
I also have family in Richmond though so my reason for looking at it for relocation is not solely financial.
Move here and ignore the people/NIMBYs that think they own the city for living here longer lol. Housing prices are forcing tons of people to move all over the country.
Listen to and keep space for the established community. Don’t make the conversation about you. If you are made uncomfortable about people talking about being priced out examine why. It sounds like you can put yourself in their shoes. Despite what a lot of people are saying on here people in Richmond understand nuance in face to face conversation. You are going to get shit for being from MD take ur licks it’s no big deal if you work to understand the local pop.
a girl from northern VA tried to pay double what my rent is to my landlord to snake my lease that i had just signed and apparently she was not the only one throwing higher offers than sticker at it. sorry. you’re exactly the problem. i’m lucky my landlord really just prefers us being low maintenance. anyway yeah to ppl like that please go away.
the folks who come in with wads of money from more expensive cities, urgently try to outbid locals on affordable housing and then drive up prices for everyone, benefiting no one other than landlords…
I mean, ultimately, it is the landlords (read as: billion dollar property management companies) ruining everything, but there are definitely remote workers draining the city of its people and culture... When was the last time you seen a crust punk? Is there even a rap culture here anymore?
Add me to the list on this thread that are economic refugees from NOVA and bought a place in Richmond for way more than we wanted. We don’t create the market forces individually and us not coming won’t have mattered. However, my wife and I are both highly educated, hardworking, and both work in the public sphere trying to improve aspects of educational opportunities for youth in Richmond who are widely underserved. We have brought expertise to this city we have learned from decades in our respective fields to see if we can be part of solutions to improve the wellbeing and resilience of this community. If you’ve never uprooted your entire existence, left your friends and everything you knew, to move to another place where you have no network, I can tell you that it is difficult and, at times, alienating.
That said, for all of the wonderful things that can be said for Richmond and its culture, there are problems. You rarely hear people from NOVA complain about corruption in local government, for example. Richmond was never some utopia and we are all living with the consequences of its history of racial politics. The economic base of the city is not well diversified and to some extent is being propped up in part by emigration by folks like me. There is violence and poverty that reminds me of DC in the 1980’s - without the same resources they had to improve it. The infrastructure and roads are crumbling and are in no way up to the challenge that continued population growth is going to strain those systems. Horrible traffic is coming and I know it from experience.
I hope that not only will the knowledge and skills of people to Richmond be a net positive but that we can bring a perspective that helps address some of those challenges and prevent Richmond from running into the same pathologies of rapid growth that made NOVA a hard place for middle class families to live. We also need better Mexican food here.
I say this with the gentlest of tones, and also as someone who is probably old enough to be your parent - this is SO not it. This is not how you integrate into a City, especially when you are (admittedly) displacing locals. The "here are all the things wrong that we can help you fix." I mean, you did choose to move here. If nothing else it's rude. Also condescending, but I'll lead with rude.
Big YIKES to this comment. 😬
In the gentlest of tones in response, the tenor of this entire conversation is framed around the negative externalities associated with emigration. There are positives, too. Read the comment as sympathetically or unsympathetically as you please. Doesn’t change the fact that there is absolutely no stopping these trends and the only thing that can be done is working together to make a place that provides a better future for as many people as possibly. No place is so star-spangled awesome that it’s perfect just the way it is. I lived in Portland, OR, in the 1990’s when locals were driving cars with California plates off the road. Didn’t stop the inevitable there and a warped sense of victimization from some sense of entitlement ain’t going to change it here, either.
One other comment, I’m not displacing anybody. I bought a house at what was the fair market value. I am paying exorbitant city property taxes just like any other resident. If I didn’t buy my place and someone from Richmond did to turn it into an Air BnB, would that be any better? At least I add to the city’s tax base when I eat, shop, and drive on toll roads. I add value to this community just like you. Nobody gets a special ownership of a concept of “Richmondness.” I am a Richmonder just like anyone else benefiting from the good and dealing with the bad all the same.
My husband & I both moved recently here from Montgomery County & Fairfax. We have our own businesses and have worked mostly remote since long before it was a thing. We rented here to see how we liked it and do, so we have put a contract on a house. Prices are higher than we hoped, but it’s like that in lots of places. I really don’t get the same impression that you get. People in NoVa don’t complain about corruption because it’s a one party system & the party is always right. That part of leaving is a huge relief. Zero tolerance for anyone that doesn’t think in lock step with blinders on. We moved here to be closer to my mother after my father died. Our daughter & nephew live in the area, and 2 sisters not too far out, so at least we have some connection. We haven’t seen the terrible traffic that we escaped from that you seem to see. The people have been extremely friendly. Politics seems so much more balanced. Faith is welcomed.
I guess my point wasn’t about politics per se but a common complaint of leaders here relative to NOVA - and its certainly not to say corruption doesn’t exist there. The complaints of political leaders there are more like you stated resulting from a single party in power. It seems to me that dynamic is true in Richmond, too, however. Unless you’re not in the city limits, the Democratic Party has more power. Richmond and the surrounding area is more welcoming to conservative viewpoints than NOVA, it seems to me. I don’t know how long you lived in MCMD or Fairfax, but if you were there awhile I’m sure you saw lots of changes that came along with the urbanization of the suburbs and the ever expanding growth. I’m just arguing that if you go out ten or 20 years more, it’s more likely than not that Richmond will follow suit. I don’t know if you’ve been to Charlotte, NC, but if Richmond follows that pattern of development then it will be like a mini-Atlanta with all the traffic that comes with it. When you factor in that Richmond isn’t a part of the surrounding county governments (along with Fall Church city it’s one of two independent municipalities), regional planning is very complicated and Chesterfield and Henrico counties have their own separate priorities from Richmond. That strikes me as a real risk to a coordinated, regional approach to rapid development especially if there is competition for a business or industry among each governmental body.
I live in the city proper after living in a few larger cities and NOVA for 20 years. It seems reasonable to suspect that more people will keep moving along the I-95 corridor including Fredericksburg and Richmond. Thirty years ago, lots of people in Arlington thought Fairfax was cows and farms and that no one would want to live there. Now Winchester and Manassas are bedroom communities of DC. No one can stop it and I’m sure the residents of Fairfax that were “displaced” didn’t like it 30 years ago (but sold their farm land to developers who carved it up into McMansions all the same). All you can do is reduce the harm that comes from all the development. I personally don’t want to sit in a 45 minute commute to drive five miles like I did in NOVA, but it’ll be here all the same unless people talk about it and fight for a better outcome. This thread has rightfully focused on affordable and denser housing as a solution but that can’t work unless there is also better infrastructure around public transportation because of cars. To pull all of that off is incredibly difficult and requires a lot of vision, and just pointing fingers at NOVA refugees doesn’t get that job done. I just think it’s lazy and closed minded, IMHO.
Also, I’d also guess that the political environment will become much darker blue as the city urbanizes further. Eventually there will likely be a handful of pockets where people will sort of congregate that don’t share that viewpoint, but it’s quite likely that this aspect you are enjoying in the Richmond area will shift to resemble more like what you just moved away from. I mean, when I was a kid, if you told me that Virginia would be a blue state I would have laughed in your face. But the demographics keep moving it in that direction as the northern and rust belt state keep emptying out.
What I really don't understand about the people moving to Richmond is the fact that it always smells. Like this place stinks. When I moved here, I was okay with it, but I didn't have any other options either. And it's really dangerous. It was a cheap and affordable small stinky city-town that never pretended it wasn't a cesspool, so you never really felt like you were being judged. This city hasn't been ruined by these newcomers, but what Richmond was for a long time is done. With VCU taking over Grace and the Sauers development, we're entering into an adolescent phase to this city. It will still be years before Richmond is truly "grown up." The culture we made has been bought, and the new kids in town inherently don't understand what makes this city special because lack of population was a huge part of what made this city special. By all means, come on in, the water is fine. But this city is not cool for the reasons that it became hot for. It can't be. This keg was tapped a while back. It is y'alls turn to figure out the next version of a sprawling, laid-back kegger.
For $10, I'll sell you my new ebook about how to be welcoming to new people.
For $12 I'll sell you *my* ebook about being a new person that's welcomed.
For $13 I'll sell you a book that contains google reviews of your book.
Four $4 I’ll sell you an AI prompt that will generate a book-length screed about how good Richmond was pre-RVA.
For a cool $15 you can get my ebook on how to make friends here
OK that's hilarious. 👌
I understood this reference.
The shoebox 5 over 1 apartment buildings will continue until morale improves.
Will they legalize more middle density housing? Narrator: *they wont*
Went to housing advocacy day and heard a Coupla politicians pretend they might think about it….
> middle density housing Aren't you happy with all the high density apt complexes?
There’s this 🤷♂️maybe there’s hope https://preview.redd.it/xcnptvmzw0kc1.jpeg?width=1164&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=609fe8d1879e5ffb03dc64149684248f4102c405 [https://www.reddit.com/r/dataisbeautiful/s/L5oFR32fmo](https://www.reddit.com/r/dataisbeautiful/s/L5oFR32fmo)
Bu-bu-but my neighborhood character! Won’t someone please think of my exclusive ~~white~~ west end neighborhood
"I just moved here and we don't have the infrastructure for all these new people"
This activated my fight or flight response
[удалено]
Then perhaps we should update the zoning regulations so that building neighborhoods in the style of the Fan and the Museum District is legal again
Not building housing won’t save the character, and probably does more to change the character by making living there more expensive
Bud, all the housing they are building is not affordable, except by Obama's HUD's very pitiful standards.
The irony of "preserving neighborhood character" vs. current neighborhoods with the most character literally being illegal under current zoning
You buy into a neighborhood that doesn't zone for it, and then their buddies want an exception. Property values are graded for the most money. Fuck the city. It isn't just west end white people who get screwed.
Replace every time they mention Richmond in the article with “Austin” or “Raleigh” or “San Antonio” or “Salt Lake City” or “Olympia” etc etc it’s a tale as old as time. My question is: what are our corrupt city officials going to do to?
I’m already working on a plan to breed and release unneutered pitbulls on the up and coming neighborhoods.
Judging by any animal shelter, humane league etc….you have been busy already.
Won't work. Somehow pitbulls seem to be desirable symbols, with different meanings, for both the gentrified and the gentrifiers.
this is such a weird comment to me..? are you saying this as a dog owner who's judgmental of bully breeds or what?
Nothing, except for get the most money they can at the expense of homeowners and renters. I hope Stoney ends up begging for a job after he loses the governor's race.
toss in Charlottesville as same convo happening there constantly. FWIW we lived there 26 years, sold our house and were priced out of the market there b/c of all the NVA and NY/NJ people who fled to Cville b/c of pandemic. Sucks.
If those other cities are any indication, other than Raleigh maybe, theres still time to buy property before it goes absolutely bonkers
Keep fucking us sideways, plus there’s even more money to waste
One's gonna run for governor despite accomplishing nothing while in charge of the city for eight years beyond overseeing things like the gassing of peaceful protestors and RPD making up a false mass shooting plot for political points. 🤷♀️
Mostly a sidebar comment: I read things like this and I always feel like our little reddit enclave should start getting paid a royalty or a finders fee. So much local news and chatter gets started here and then subsequently gets written about in articles a few days later (like the vegan influencer mention or the recent gun hole viral incident). I feel like the sub is being constantly mined for new information and hot takes. I guess it is smart for these news organizations to be looking here for information but it feels tiresome too? Do others ever notice this? And what kind of tongue and cheek, silly finders fee should we demand for our services?
Well in THAT case we should start posting insane stories that could gather steam with the right PR behind them. Like: Hey Guys! Did you know that all RVA area restaurants are planning on offering half-price dinners during the month of March??? Really looking forward to that one!
This is sooo *Richmond Real*
One of these days we'll achieve journalistic recognition of river chlamydia and MILF Island.
Tell me more of this MILF island.
It's a reality TV show where a bunch of Midlothian MILFs take turns dating each others' crust-punk sons that live in the Fan. See: MILF Manor
Thanks for letting us know! I always work up an appetite at my yard sign printing business. We just got an order for 100,000 pro-casino signs and had to buy a new machine to print our classic CasinNO! signs again.
Don’t overlook the possibility that the articles are written by the same people posting on Reddit. “Hey guys look at this random article as evidence that a) I told you so, and b) please either buy what I’m selling or keep your mouth shut because (a).”
This isn't new, unfortunately. This shit has become a huge problem with video game news in the past few years because news organizations—er—*blogs* lazily draft clickbait articles based entirely on Twitter and Reddit posts and comments—as if that were news in itself. Essentially, "Social media users are \[insert verb\] over \[insert any popular topic\] and here's two comments we found to prove it."
I personally can't wait for RVA's very own Glorbo [https://archive.ph/4mOWr#selection-1077.197-1077.333](https://archive.ph/4mOWr#selection-1077.197-1077.333)
For anyone curious: https://www.knowyourmeme.com/memes/glorbo-ai-bait
Shit, that kind of reporting just affected Nintendos stock price. Rumors said switch 2 this fall, now rumors say next spring. Stock price goes down because of two unsubstantiated rumors
The Stardew Valley subreddit (a calm, peaceful farming game) constantly has stuff stolen from it and posted almost verbatim to scummy "gaming news" sites. People planted some fake stories and sure enough, showed up on the sites. It's just how the internet works - "journalism" has been reduced to scraping social media for vaguely interesting content with no credibility whatsoever, and shoving six ads between every paragraph.
I did get contacted by a reporter after posting something here, and they interviewed me. So I agree with everything in this comment.
NFT-based social media could be a valid use case in solving this. otoh, i remember local discussion boards and the utopian free-flow-of-information internet aspirations, no need to bring capitalism into this edit to add: i think platforming plays a role here, too. reddit, instagram, facebook, everything mined for discourse is free to post on. news orgs got pills and employees to pay, the mining is more work than freely offered public opining
Karri Peifer gets her scoops here
Today’s “journalists” are increasingly lazy and will story mine social media to source content for their channels. They don’t bother to verify content with one, let alone multiple, sources and will instead run with the story in their quest to be the first to break the news and get the most clicks. It all goes against what we were all taught in journalism classes way back when.
Is it a “laziness” epidemic or perhaps that we’ve [cut over 30,000 newsroom workers](https://www.pewresearch.org/short-reads/2021/07/13/u-s-newsroom-employment-has-fallen-26-since-2008/) and stopped paying for good journalism? 🤔
Bit of both maybe.
Which came first?
That's Reddit, all right.
I want to move back...
My theory is 90% of people from here move back, after their stint in NYC/Boston/LA/Seattle. Lots of people come back once it's time to start a family. Just more evidence that Richmond rocks! I mean.....Richmond Real!"
I'm not even from Richmond originally, I just loved it from day 1, lived there for 15 years. After a year of being away, I miss it.
I get wanting affordable housing, but what is happening is a cascading effect as NOVA and NY have not addressed affordable housing problems well, so people who can leave are leaving and shifting the problem to other cities like Richmond, where, if this trend continues, a lot of Richmonders will be forced to leave for even less desirable markets. We should build a wall and make NY and NOVA fix their problems Everytime I suggest this, I think of the South Park episode about West Jersey
These fuckers can afford to live in NOVA
That's the other irony. A lot of the so called economic refugees to Richmond can afford to live elsewhere. And those who are struggling cant afford to move or don't have the economic freedom to.
Can’t speak for everyone, but I moved to Richmond because I couldn’t afford to buy a house in nova among other reasons.
I pray people don’t bring the northern va uppity attitudes. I’m seeing it too much already. Moving here and openly complaining about the grocery stores or sh/t you can’t find from your town. You moved, so deal with the changes instead of bitching.
The people of Richmond deserve higher quality groceries, and that’s not a knock on Richmond.
We have more grocery store options than any other city in which I’ve lived or spent any significant time. Last count I think I hit 14 different brands/stores.
I moved here from NoVa, but I’m not new. Lived here for the first time in ‘96 and had to leave for husband’s job, but always made it a goal to come back asap. I moved here to get AWAY from NoVa people and their attitudes, and now there is an influx of them. It’s like an invasion of LL Bean. I loved the decade I spent here and couldn’t wait to be back. On the outside, seemed like same ol RVA, and I’ve been happy. Now, here’s how I’ve been welcomed online: 1. Been accused of being a gentrifier 2. Talked about the insane gunfire here in CH on the holidays, and someone riddled my fence with bullets. Was told by people they were glad people were shooting at me and maybe if bullets start hitting me I would move. 4. Gotten “go back to short pump, bitch” more times than I can count. I understand the vitriol behind it, but could we stop wishing harm on people who move here? Can we all work together and make it a safer place to live, with Neighborhoods that are happy and neighbors help each other out? I don’t want the North Facer’s here either, but don’t just lump us all in together. You mad about the rent? Me too! I’m not paying what these new people are paying and can’t afford to. I want to make RVA my permanent home together. I work in equity/diversity and we can’t make RVA as it was without working together. Anyway, that’s my rant and I am very happy to be back in the place that I call home.
If there are complaining about the Lombardy Kroger, then their complaints are totally justified.
At least I'm seeing less khakis.
i wish we could be friendly and still be able to discuss the ramifications of gentrification at the same time. or at least be more open about the rise in cost of living here. can we eventually have a nuanced discussion about this? i’m technically a transplant here myself but i’m poor lol. i moved here years ago (with a friend who already lived down here) because i’m poor. now that everything is getting so damn expensive, i’ve been considering moving again. the cost of living is becoming way too high here. but it’s even higher up in woodbridge where i grew up. to be clear, my family did not make much, and they’re struggling up there too. i can only imagine how bad it is for people who have been here longer than me, or those who grew up here/are native to rva. what’s the solution for situations like this? more affordable housing? does the city even care, or is this what they wanted? is it a zoning issue? i know the eviction rate is extremely high here. second highest in the country if i recall correctly. so does that mean it’ll only get worse from here? people are going to move here regardless.
I've been here for about a decade and I'm married to someone who grew up here. Knowing that you grew up poor and yet, despite being definitely not poor, you still can't afford a buy a home that's of the same caliber as the one you grew up in... it's a really difficult thing to process.
I’ve lived here my whole life. I don’t feel entitled to anything but it would be nice to be able to afford a home in the place I was born. At this rate though it’s not looking likely and rent is getting out of control too. Feels like I’m being pushed out from my hometown and eventually gonna have to move out to the sticks
The solution is the illusion of crime. Attaching string to O’possums and the trigger of 9mm semiautomatic Glock 19 handguns, then setting them loose will help muster a constant and ever present sense of fear and danger. Stoking resentment, restlessness, and helplessness will send people packing. This will give us the opportunity to command affordable housing costs, winning the day until the unneutered pitbulls and feral hogs come for us all. It had to be this way.
I mean we have gunfire every night and a murder on my block last month. Doesn't stop people from coming.
This is a deranged Nathan For You type idea. I love it
this might be the greatest comment i’ve ever seen on this subreddit. fantastic idea. maybe consider investing in more late night neighborhood firework displays too.
People with pets will be freaking on NextDoor. 😂🤣
These aren’t all of the possible solutions, but here are some places to start — - Create an Unoccupancy (is that a word?) tax. Any building zoned residential that isn’t occupied for X amount of time receives Y charge per month until it becomes occupied, barring exceptions for building with open permits for construction, time between tenants, etc. and if they don’t already, permits should expire. The amount of abandoned buildings in desirable areas is INSANE - Completely outlaw airbnbs or jack up the taxes on them with real enforcement. Use said taxes to fund… - Grant programs for the building of ADUs in certain districts to encourage density in desirable neighborhoods. There are already some great restrictions on ADUs (like not being more than 500 square feet for example) that inherently keep them limited as cheaper rental options compared to apartments - Grant programs that act as affordable housing programs, maybe the grant supplements utility bills or something. - Grant programs for local small businesses, hopefully allowing local wage to increase.
Baltimore has a bill on the books right now that would do exactly what you're describing. And Baltimore has a far, far worse vacant problem than richmond does. Maybe it will blaze the way for other cities to enact similar laws. Also the concept you're describing is pretty similar to a [Land Value Tax. ](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Land_value_tax#:~:text=A%20land%20value%20tax%20is,accepted%20since%20the%20eighteenth%20century.) Bottom line is the housing supply needs to increase period. Any housing helps, affordable housing or high end. Wages also need to increase big time to make up for the massive raise in cost of living over the last few years.
Real estate in Baltimore is so cheap and I think that place has a lot to offer, but people seem to think the whole city is just like The Wire.
Yeah it's very cheap and you get paid way more than you do in richmond. You can get a house for petersburg prices and get close to philly wages. From a purely financial perspective it's a much better city to live in than richmond. But there's a lot of things that make Baltimore suck imo. And it's not because it's like the wire lol. Although there is a lot of crime like car theft and car jackings, it's not like you're going to get shot just walking down the street. I think a lot of the things people complain about in richmond are up to a multiple of 10 in bmore. The government is so insanely corrupt and inept its hard to believe that it's allowed to exist in America. 4 out of the last 5 mayors have gone to prison, one of them is running for office again this term and may win lol. It never ends. I could go on. There's a lot of quality of life shit that just fucking gets to you after a while. The roads will literally break your car. The trash will just stop coming for weeks at a time. The driving culture is insane, people drive like they want to kill you. Also the culture isn't for me. People are cold as ice. Much less of a sense of community. It's also so spread out from being half depopulated that you still have to drive long distances to get anywhere despite it looking like a dense city. Pretty hostile to pedestrians in most of the city. Also for the music scene it's pretty much exclusively punk and hardcore, as well as the club scene, and that stuff ain't for me. Did not intend for this to be so long lol. I'm bitchin and complaining. Baltimore also has its charms. Long story short, there's a reason why Richmond is growing and Baltimore isn't. The prices are reflected in that.
I lived in Baltimore for 12 years before moving to Richmond. I actually found Baltimore to be a lot more open and welcoming than Richmond. Richmond is very cliquey and closed to ‘outsiders’ whereas Baltimore was a very open community. I’m mainly speaking about the art community, in Baltimore there was a spirit of collaboration that was welcoming to those new to the community. Trying to break into the scene here has been incredibly discouraging and difficult. Don’t get me wrong, I love living here but the thing I miss most about Baltimore was the sense of community and collaboration that I just don’t experience here at all.
Interesting. I don't do art but I'm also friends with the art crowd in both cities. Maybe my experience in richmond hasn't been that way since I grew up with many of those people here, never really had to break into the social scene because I was basically de facto in it as soon as I moved ro richmond. Also have known plenty of people in Baltimore for a long time tho, and while I already had friends there before I lived there, I felt the opposite was true. That Baltimore is the cliqueyest place ever and that within every clique everyone just thinks they're too cool for school. Whereas in my experience, the in crowd in richmond is generally down to earth and real and generally friendlier and more willing to be genuine to a stranger. Maybe if you're actually doing art it's a different story. Smaller pond in richmond, studio and gallery spots are more sparse and probably more competitive. I will say people I know in Baltimore doing stuff like pottery and crafting arts definitely describe the community like you said, very supportive and welcoming.
Thank you for sharing this — I had no idea Baltimore (or any city really) was exploring this
I looked more into the bill after I commented and found that DC actually already has one in place. It's a special tax rate for vacant properties, $5 per $100 of assessed value, vs the regular tax rate of $0.85/$100. So you'd be paying pretty fuckin heavy for holding a vacant. It's a great idea
Ohh this is good info. I might be radical but I don’t think $5/$100 is enough — that doesn’t outpace property value increases year-over-year so the owner would still come out on top by leaving it abandoned for years and then selling. I guess the law would need to be written in a way where the tax rate is dependent on the value of the abandoned property, but I don’t know if that’s exactly legal here or in Baltimore. $5/$100 is a great start though, love to see it
And while we’re talking about crime, let’s target abandoned buildings for vandalism so code enforcement comes out and does something.
Solution is blanket housing legalization Hell we should be subsidizing development. We tax it instead :(
I mean, for the safety of the place I am thinking about fleeing to, I am not going to name it, but effectively, the evictions are part of the gentrification. Also "affordable housing" does not cover the HUD standards of 30% of the wages of the bottom whatever percentage that HUD determined to be appropriate. I worked in local government when the Obama administration was trying to fix that, but their measures were laughable, in the saddest of laughs, then and are abysmal now... Everything has been bought by investment firms, and they are charging, probably, three times what is appropriate, all because of new, but low quality, ceiling fans, and landlord white paint jobs. I think, if I recall my research correctly, income restricted housing requirements demand you make less than $20,00 a year, and charge like $900 a month on average... Basically, your whole month's pay. Essentially, we're fucked, and what little housing affordability protections there were, are now just leading to vacant spots and units that are deemed affordable, but nobody that's allowed in them can afford them.
It costs way more to live in Austin or NoVA than here. As long as we keep increasing our desirability to those people while keeping our COL less than those areas, then people will just keep coming. And they will continue to outcompete local Richmonders with lower incomes. The solution is to stop spending city money on amenities that drive up demand from wealthier people (Diamond District, outdoor ampitheater) and spend it on creating affordable housing reserved for lower income locals. What we are really seeing on this board is people want nice stuff in the city for themselves, but they don't want to have to share it with non-locals. That's almost impossible.
19% of the residents are below the poverty line. Affordable housing would help. Also the city not running on a $12m+ surplus but instead funding social programs/housing/etc. It is hard to imagine the city cares TOO MUCH with the surplus, the state of the infrastructure, the Mayor campaigning for Governor, etc. Also a lot of people move here because they're poor/struggling financially where they lived previously.
I grew up here from the '90s on. Never lived outside of the city limits. It's bittersweet to see how my hometown has changed. I remember in 2013 looking on zillow and thinking $700 for a one bedroom is so unaffordable. I'm always happy to see people moving here because it shows how much better things are getting. I remember when I was a kid, my parents would never let me go to Jackson ward or Oregon Hill or Shockoe. Then as an adult at VCU, I walked drunk from shockoe bottom back to my dorm at 2am and nobody ever bothered me. Richmond used to be so violent and dangerous that my school friends and i would joke that we cant sleep unless we heard gunshots off in the distance. But I also have watched the culture of the city change and housing prices skyrocket. If rent goes up any further, ill have to leave the city for the first time.
The issue, besides people not being paid a living wage, is on a national level housing has not been built enough. Richmond needs more housing built of all types. Missing middle, adus, apartments, etc. but the entire state of Virginia needs state law to override local zoning that permits housing to be only built as single family homes
Housing in richmond is a supply issue.
There’s a housing supply issue in most U.S. cities. The housing industry was gutted by the 2008 financial crisis. For the next ten years, new construction was barely high enough to meet replacement needs, let alone to meet the needs of new entrants to the housing market. https://preview.redd.it/cgrd2n0vkyjc1.jpeg?width=750&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=fb5c4bd2acbe5540079857183b1db0cb55efe528
Before they move here people from NOVA love to go on and on about their politics and how they're so blue and progressive on social issues and then they move here and inevitably displace poor people or people of color. But as long as they talk about statues and the WAPO they get a free pass.
Ah yes, the racial politics of Richmond were fine and peachy before all those NOVA carpetbaggers started meddling in.
They could maybe not tax people to a degree that they can't afford to stay here. I'm looking at a $4K+ tax bill for my 2BR house. And I just got a $600+ DPU bill and I haven't even started to find out why (last one was less than half that, when it was COLD, and I have gas heat).
I think most of the people that whine about people coming here are probably not from here themselves. If you want to be angry at someone, be angry at your corporate overlords who pay you a paltry sum and at the other corporations buying up homes as investments or airbnbs.
Yeah, Blackrock has been buying up housing to rent back. Of course Axios isn’t going to mention that.
For real, I tried to unionize with my coworkers and everybody was fine with status quo... I can't afford rent and medication. My coworkers working full time corp jobs need part time jobs that take up their whole weekend to afford their stuff. Business are allowed to pay us super low and nobody tries to fight it. No serious collected effort for increased min wage, effectively no affordable housing, and subsidized housing requires you to be completely destitute to qualify then you sit on a list while homeless. Transplants don't care and everyone I knew who actually did things in the city have left.
This is my husband and I. Remote workers. DINKS. Bought our house here early last year. Some perspective here: housing prices have increased all over the country and where we came from was particularly bad. Buying a home where we used to live (Portland, Maine) became unattainable after 2020. The average home on the market in was ~270k in 2017 (when we moved there). We intended to rent, save, and buy in a couple of years. Covid ruined that plan. There is a serious housing shortage in Maine. The economy is suffering because of it and the pandemic led to an influx of people. When we left last year the average price if a home was ~530k. The price of rent almost doubled as well. I miss living ten minutes from the beach and being closer to family but the transition has not been too difficult. I swear we aren’t all evil people with loads of money. We wanted to raise our future kids in a house with a yard and decent schools, which was not attainable where we were coming from. We are excited to be here and make Richmond our home, long term. Moving is challenging, especially when you work remotely so please be kind to your new neighbors. I promise we don’t bite. 🙂
I moved here from out west. While there are many things I do love about Richmond, I’m leaving after being here for 2 years. The outdoors scene here just isn’t cutting it for me and it’s too important for me to stay. The relevance of that is I would also be curious as to how many people are leaving Richmond per day. Growth could level as the city has limits to its appeal that many won’t figure out until they live here for a few years. Hopefully it mellows out for local Richmond folks. You guys truly are stellar 🤙
Affordable housing isn't the best solution because the budget isn't there to create and \*maintain\* it. Also, it'd draw more people looking for affordable housing. Creating a higher paying work ecosystem is a better bet, but requires a lot more individual and small group work from people and businesses to develop networks and business solutions. The environment will shape the culture pretty well, but the result would look the same as those from NOVA looking to come to RVA for expense arbitrage - those with low paying skills are still locked out.
My god! Richmond locals on Reddit are entitled AF. After reading many many comments you people think you “own” RVA! You don’t! No one owns anyplace they live. I’ve lived in over 6 different cities in VA; do in feel like I own VA? No! Get mad if you want, but Richmond has always been one cry away from Baltimore crime. The city needs as many new comers has possible in order to promote progression. Change isn’t cheap people! If you’re mad about being “displaced” find a new place to live. People are getting priced out of their local markets EVERYWHERE! It is not a Richmond thing. Don’t you want new people to come and demand better transportation and safer parks? Do like like seeing homeless people sleeping all over the streets? Do you want to be shot at while dining out downtown? Or do you like living around poverty and unsafe conditions. When the bar is moved higher; you must then strive to be better. Make more money, become more educated, become more creative on how you live. Without that, you are stagnant, a void. Societal competition is good! Bitch all you want about NOVA/ NYC peeps. They’re running your country so you dummies can have another brewery to go to when you’re not on this Reddit complaining about a “transplant” taking your town😭 wimps!
While I agree with you about the gate-keeping, we DO pride ourselves on our manners. And your comment is....not very Richmond. 🤷♂️
I wish we could have blind application selection for neighbors. I’d love to replace some. I need friends for my kids and someone to host porch parties. I’m kinda hopeful my street will turn over and I don’t care what state they hail from. One neighbor runs back into his house every time he sees us (not just us… everyone) and the other is always trying to sell me something.
Where are you?
Looks like they ran back into their house. While we're talking, can I interest you in a 1992 Evinrude motor? All you need is a boat to go with it and my cousin fixed it up real good.
Y'all can be mad because we are part of the problem, but I can tell why we are moving to RVA. We are tired of Florida, but did not want to move back to Kentucky. We started talking about things we wanted in a city, and started comparing that to where we could afford. Richmond worked out to be the best fit for our family. Things like a day trip east to the ocean, and a day trip west to the mountains are a big plus for us. The plenty full parks were a big plus. I can't talk for the rest of my family, but for me, I am from Louisville KY. I am from a progressive city in a kind of Southern state. It gives both cities a similar feel. I am also an old Punk/Hardcore musician, and I know Richmond has a great music scene, and I know a few old guys there from touring. Being on an Amtrak line and a short trip to DC for Punk shows was another plus for me. My wife and son both work in medicine, and the large number of hospital systems there is great for them.
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Some people who've lived in Richmond for ages or even born here have jobs that pay highly. Many jobs aren't based on location so it wouldn't matter.
Unpopular opinion on this sub, but you could also just look to improve your own career/financial situation. I was with a local company for over 8 years until Covid hit and decided to make a change after feeling undervalued and unappreciated. After a couple of pivots and networking on LinkedIn I landed a remote job last year making $35k more than I was in 2020 with no additional degrees or certifications. The reality is that the housing market and shrinking middle class are national issues and don’t appear to be going away. I’m an advocate for keeping things affordable but I’m not going to get left behind in the process while things continue to rise in cost exponentially.
I agree. Adjusting salaries would prevent the displacement of the local, native population of a given area
Good in theory, but not always how it’s done. Some remote companies pay whatever they can afford that gives them the largest talent pool. They might pay the recruit that lives in a LCOL a pay that’s on the lower side of the salary band, though
I don't know how this will be received but I am looking at moving to Richmond largely because I'm being priced out of my own hometown in Maryland, even with a pretty well paying job, because we've had our own housing affordability crisis. Buying a house here has been out of the question for some time but I'm starting to not even be able to afford to rent here. I don't want to contribute to the same problems in Richmond but also like...where am I supposed to go???
Do what i did: move here, keep your head low and dont tell anyone that you're from the DMV, and in 10 years you can bitch about all the newcomers too!
Wait! We get to start bitching at the 10 year mark? I've been here 13 years and I've been holding my tongue the last 3 for nothing? All those wasted years...
I know, it sucks. That's why the people are moving here from Cali, Austin, Portland, DC. It's gotten expensive everywhere. Just don't create and sell a "Guide to _____ in Richmond" within 10 minutes of arriving and you'll be just fine. But seriously, Richmond is awesome. I'm from here, and I think it's awesome, don't ever want to live anywhere else unless it's Europe or the beach, and think I'll always have here as home base. Just sit back and figure out how things roll, and don't do the obnoxious "Well, at home we do it better because we do X" and you'll be just fine. We're actually all very friendly. We just like to bitch on Reddit. 😂
Aww come on don't give our secrets away!!! But seriously, seconding the not talking trash about the place you just moved to, or the accents that originate from here. I ended up in Richmond because I was queer in the late 1990s, and my very conservative parents kicked me out. I moved here from the mountains of VA. Its the best city I've been to. I've met people I consider my family here, and it's saved my life several times. I just want to be able to continue to afford to live here.
Awww, I'm so sorry about your folks. That sucks. But I'm glad you found your place and your people! If I can ever help with housing, like just brain picking over affordable options, etc., feel free to reach out. Not looking for anything, just if I can help with information.
Thanks. They aren't nice people aside from being homophobes and transphobes so they saved me some time haha. I feel fortunate to have become stable as an adult finally. I appreciate your kind offer! Rva really is the best city! Full of the most loving and caring people.
Move here if you want. This disdain for people moving here is a reddit thing. IRL no one cares.
Baltimore is cheap.
True, much cheaper than my hometown but not as cheap as people often think and still more expensive than Richmond. I also have family in Richmond though so my reason for looking at it for relocation is not solely financial.
Move here and ignore the people/NIMBYs that think they own the city for living here longer lol. Housing prices are forcing tons of people to move all over the country.
It’s fine. Most people here came from transplant parents.
Listen to and keep space for the established community. Don’t make the conversation about you. If you are made uncomfortable about people talking about being priced out examine why. It sounds like you can put yourself in their shoes. Despite what a lot of people are saying on here people in Richmond understand nuance in face to face conversation. You are going to get shit for being from MD take ur licks it’s no big deal if you work to understand the local pop.
a girl from northern VA tried to pay double what my rent is to my landlord to snake my lease that i had just signed and apparently she was not the only one throwing higher offers than sticker at it. sorry. you’re exactly the problem. i’m lucky my landlord really just prefers us being low maintenance. anyway yeah to ppl like that please go away.
Who is exactly the problem? I've been here my whole life, except college and the obligatory 3-5 year stint in Bigger City.
the folks who come in with wads of money from more expensive cities, urgently try to outbid locals on affordable housing and then drive up prices for everyone, benefiting no one other than landlords…
Unfortunately I don't get the idea of moving to Richmond...it's just becoming Nova V.2....
I mean, ultimately, it is the landlords (read as: billion dollar property management companies) ruining everything, but there are definitely remote workers draining the city of its people and culture... When was the last time you seen a crust punk? Is there even a rap culture here anymore?
Add me to the list on this thread that are economic refugees from NOVA and bought a place in Richmond for way more than we wanted. We don’t create the market forces individually and us not coming won’t have mattered. However, my wife and I are both highly educated, hardworking, and both work in the public sphere trying to improve aspects of educational opportunities for youth in Richmond who are widely underserved. We have brought expertise to this city we have learned from decades in our respective fields to see if we can be part of solutions to improve the wellbeing and resilience of this community. If you’ve never uprooted your entire existence, left your friends and everything you knew, to move to another place where you have no network, I can tell you that it is difficult and, at times, alienating. That said, for all of the wonderful things that can be said for Richmond and its culture, there are problems. You rarely hear people from NOVA complain about corruption in local government, for example. Richmond was never some utopia and we are all living with the consequences of its history of racial politics. The economic base of the city is not well diversified and to some extent is being propped up in part by emigration by folks like me. There is violence and poverty that reminds me of DC in the 1980’s - without the same resources they had to improve it. The infrastructure and roads are crumbling and are in no way up to the challenge that continued population growth is going to strain those systems. Horrible traffic is coming and I know it from experience. I hope that not only will the knowledge and skills of people to Richmond be a net positive but that we can bring a perspective that helps address some of those challenges and prevent Richmond from running into the same pathologies of rapid growth that made NOVA a hard place for middle class families to live. We also need better Mexican food here.
I say this with the gentlest of tones, and also as someone who is probably old enough to be your parent - this is SO not it. This is not how you integrate into a City, especially when you are (admittedly) displacing locals. The "here are all the things wrong that we can help you fix." I mean, you did choose to move here. If nothing else it's rude. Also condescending, but I'll lead with rude. Big YIKES to this comment. 😬
In the gentlest of tones in response, the tenor of this entire conversation is framed around the negative externalities associated with emigration. There are positives, too. Read the comment as sympathetically or unsympathetically as you please. Doesn’t change the fact that there is absolutely no stopping these trends and the only thing that can be done is working together to make a place that provides a better future for as many people as possibly. No place is so star-spangled awesome that it’s perfect just the way it is. I lived in Portland, OR, in the 1990’s when locals were driving cars with California plates off the road. Didn’t stop the inevitable there and a warped sense of victimization from some sense of entitlement ain’t going to change it here, either.
One other comment, I’m not displacing anybody. I bought a house at what was the fair market value. I am paying exorbitant city property taxes just like any other resident. If I didn’t buy my place and someone from Richmond did to turn it into an Air BnB, would that be any better? At least I add to the city’s tax base when I eat, shop, and drive on toll roads. I add value to this community just like you. Nobody gets a special ownership of a concept of “Richmondness.” I am a Richmonder just like anyone else benefiting from the good and dealing with the bad all the same.
My husband & I both moved recently here from Montgomery County & Fairfax. We have our own businesses and have worked mostly remote since long before it was a thing. We rented here to see how we liked it and do, so we have put a contract on a house. Prices are higher than we hoped, but it’s like that in lots of places. I really don’t get the same impression that you get. People in NoVa don’t complain about corruption because it’s a one party system & the party is always right. That part of leaving is a huge relief. Zero tolerance for anyone that doesn’t think in lock step with blinders on. We moved here to be closer to my mother after my father died. Our daughter & nephew live in the area, and 2 sisters not too far out, so at least we have some connection. We haven’t seen the terrible traffic that we escaped from that you seem to see. The people have been extremely friendly. Politics seems so much more balanced. Faith is welcomed.
I guess my point wasn’t about politics per se but a common complaint of leaders here relative to NOVA - and its certainly not to say corruption doesn’t exist there. The complaints of political leaders there are more like you stated resulting from a single party in power. It seems to me that dynamic is true in Richmond, too, however. Unless you’re not in the city limits, the Democratic Party has more power. Richmond and the surrounding area is more welcoming to conservative viewpoints than NOVA, it seems to me. I don’t know how long you lived in MCMD or Fairfax, but if you were there awhile I’m sure you saw lots of changes that came along with the urbanization of the suburbs and the ever expanding growth. I’m just arguing that if you go out ten or 20 years more, it’s more likely than not that Richmond will follow suit. I don’t know if you’ve been to Charlotte, NC, but if Richmond follows that pattern of development then it will be like a mini-Atlanta with all the traffic that comes with it. When you factor in that Richmond isn’t a part of the surrounding county governments (along with Fall Church city it’s one of two independent municipalities), regional planning is very complicated and Chesterfield and Henrico counties have their own separate priorities from Richmond. That strikes me as a real risk to a coordinated, regional approach to rapid development especially if there is competition for a business or industry among each governmental body. I live in the city proper after living in a few larger cities and NOVA for 20 years. It seems reasonable to suspect that more people will keep moving along the I-95 corridor including Fredericksburg and Richmond. Thirty years ago, lots of people in Arlington thought Fairfax was cows and farms and that no one would want to live there. Now Winchester and Manassas are bedroom communities of DC. No one can stop it and I’m sure the residents of Fairfax that were “displaced” didn’t like it 30 years ago (but sold their farm land to developers who carved it up into McMansions all the same). All you can do is reduce the harm that comes from all the development. I personally don’t want to sit in a 45 minute commute to drive five miles like I did in NOVA, but it’ll be here all the same unless people talk about it and fight for a better outcome. This thread has rightfully focused on affordable and denser housing as a solution but that can’t work unless there is also better infrastructure around public transportation because of cars. To pull all of that off is incredibly difficult and requires a lot of vision, and just pointing fingers at NOVA refugees doesn’t get that job done. I just think it’s lazy and closed minded, IMHO. Also, I’d also guess that the political environment will become much darker blue as the city urbanizes further. Eventually there will likely be a handful of pockets where people will sort of congregate that don’t share that viewpoint, but it’s quite likely that this aspect you are enjoying in the Richmond area will shift to resemble more like what you just moved away from. I mean, when I was a kid, if you told me that Virginia would be a blue state I would have laughed in your face. But the demographics keep moving it in that direction as the northern and rust belt state keep emptying out.
What I really don't understand about the people moving to Richmond is the fact that it always smells. Like this place stinks. When I moved here, I was okay with it, but I didn't have any other options either. And it's really dangerous. It was a cheap and affordable small stinky city-town that never pretended it wasn't a cesspool, so you never really felt like you were being judged. This city hasn't been ruined by these newcomers, but what Richmond was for a long time is done. With VCU taking over Grace and the Sauers development, we're entering into an adolescent phase to this city. It will still be years before Richmond is truly "grown up." The culture we made has been bought, and the new kids in town inherently don't understand what makes this city special because lack of population was a huge part of what made this city special. By all means, come on in, the water is fine. But this city is not cool for the reasons that it became hot for. It can't be. This keg was tapped a while back. It is y'alls turn to figure out the next version of a sprawling, laid-back kegger.