“Where We Call Home”- On Point Special Series

On Point Co-Host Meghna Chakrabarti leads a special four-part series Mondays in March to explore the changing landscape of neighborhoods across America. Economic, social, aesthetic and political forces all factor in to where and how we choose to live. Join us as we dig in — on-air, online and on social — with listeners, experts, politicians and journalists to uncover how our communities are evolving in the 21st century.

Part I - There Goes the Neighborhood (Monday, March 4, 11am EST)
Tech companies move in and suddenly, affordable housing is at stake. Neighborhoods are impacted for better or for worse. We’ll dig in with insights from Seattle and New Jersey, plus explore a new trend to provide more middle income housing. We track the need for affordable housing, what makes areas unaffordable – and where are residents supposed to go when prices skyrocket?

Seattle: Microsoft spending money to create affordable housing
Denver and the nation: A new push underway to try and get more “middle income housing” – what does it look like now and in the years ahead?

Guests:
• Mike Rosenberg, real estate reporter Seattle Times
• Christiana Foglio, housing developer in New Jersey
• Mollie Fitzpatrick, Managing Director Root Policy Research in Denver

Part II - Move Here…But Work from Home Somewhere Else Please (Monday, March 11, 11am EST)
It’s a movement: states, cities and towns are looking for new blood. A new generation of workers whose jobs are remote. The pitch: “We’ll pay you to move here, but it’s with a caveat that you must already have a job and work remotely there — from here.”
Places: It’s happening in states like Vermont, which is reimbursing people to move there and cities like Tulsa, where people are applying for a “fellowship” that provides help with rent, co-work space and an up to $10K stipend.

We’re seeking answers to better understand questions like: Can we really live anywhere? Is this a trend because of demographics? Are places trying just to bring in more tech-savvy workers? Could this be the future of the American workforce – telecommuters? Will these tactics help save smaller cities and towns if you don’t depend on the place for your work, but do support the community in other ways like patronage to local brick-and-mortar stores?

Guests:
• State Senator Michael Sirotkin of Vermont
• Ken Levit, Executive Director of the George Kaiser Family Foundation in Tulsa, Oklahoma
• Marianne Wanamaker, economist at the University of Tennessee

Part III - Rent versus Buy (Monday, March 18, 11am EST)
Is home ownership still the American Dream? Where you call home can impact your financial future. Is owning a home an investment or a liability? We’ve dusted ourselves off now, a decade after the subprime mortgage crisis, and we’ll take a look at the pros and cons of renting or buying your primary residence.

Guests:
• Ryan Dezember, real estate correspondent for the Wall Street Journal
• Ivy Zelman, housing analyst and CEO of Zelman & Associates based in Cleveland

Part IV – In Praise of Small Towns (Monday, March 25, 11am EST)
Do you cherish living in a small town? Or maybe you don't live in a small town, but feel frustrated by your daily commute, cringe at local real estate prices and intrigued by the lifestyle and neighborhoods featured on shows like HGTV’s "Home Town" set in Laurel, Mississippi.

Guests:
• Erin and/or Ben Napier, hosts of HGTV’s “Hometown”

Ongoing - Calling all On Point listeners: Listeners, callers and online commenters are a vital part of our show. You’re invited to be part of the series. Help us in our quest to better understand how Americans are living in 2019 by taking our quick survey here or share your message over the phone at (617) 353-0683 (we might use your message during a broadcast or online).

Topics and guests are subject to change.