House prices are falling fastest in the areas with longest commutes, reports NPR, upsetting the traditional real estate mantra of “drive ‘til you qualify” where homebuyers put up with longer and longer commutes for cheaper housing.

Buyers are now asking different questions: “What is the cost of gasoline? What is the cost of my time?” … Buyers underestimated the costs of their long commutes. Those expenses can add up to more than the buyers saved on the home.

Developers also miscalculated, lured by cheap land and rising home prices. Many of the projects were simply too far away from places that people need to go.

Instead, housing prices are staying high near commuter rail stations. Maybe the new mantra is “ride the train ‘til you qualify”?

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Tagged: affordable housing, housing, transit

David Alpert created Greater Greater Washington in 2008 and was its executive director until 2020. He formerly worked in tech and has lived in the Boston, San Francisco Bay, and New York metro areas in addition to Washington, DC. He lives with his wife and two children in Dupont Circle.