In the article “The rise of the Sunbelt,” the authors assess the effects of rising demand for Southern amenities, rising productivity, and increase in the housing supply, in the rise of Sunbelt. The authors use the housing price, income, and population growth data in their analysis. First, the paper discusses the three hypotheses explaining why the South rose, using empirical methodology. The authors then analyze the effects of population, income growth, and housing price using various statistical tools including multiple regressions.
The findings reveal that the growth of the Sunbelt had little to do with sun-related amenities. Before 1980, there was significant increase in the economic productivity in warmer areas, which resulted in population growth. From 1980, economic productivity has been modest while the housing supply has been growing enormously as the prices fall. The fall in housing prices in the Sunbelt, as compared to the rest of the country, reveals that there is no increase in the willingness of the people to pay for the sun-related amenities.
In the article “The public sector and Sunbelt development,” the author discusses the economic development of Sunbelt regions, especially due to the semipublic sectors of the US economy such as agriculture, defense, and energy. Lucker argues that government attention is vital in the fast-growing Sunbelt. It is the massive government assistance that keeps large agricultural firms existing. The article highlights that public-sector restructuring during the Reagan-Bush administrations expanded the scope of semipublic economy. This favored the Sunbelt regions due to the flow of federal revenue to the semipublic enterprises of these regions. This stabilized the financial and real estate sectors of the Sunbelt region. The Clinton-era restructuring, however, resulted in the contraction of the semipublic sectors.
Roberts’s article highlights the struggles that the Sunbelt regions endure to keep the water resources clean and manageable, and to ensure that water productivity is sufficient. The author argues that the diverse growth of Sunbelt cities, such as Phoenix, dictates the resilience in withstanding hurricanes, interest rate rises, and oil shocks. The regions are suitable for new businesses, thus have attracted population growth. The private-sector developers stimulate a sense of community that helps in setting up little league and ballet classes. The hot climate, associated with deserts, also breeds exuberance.
References
Edward, L. G., & Tobio, K. (2008). The rise of the Sunbelt. Southern Economic Journal, 74(3), 609-643. Retrieved from http://ezproxy.lib.indiana.edu/login?url=http://search.proquest.com/docview/212152861?accountid=11620
Lucker, Bill Jr. (1997). The public sector and Sunbelt development. Challenge, 40(4), 58-82. Retrieved from http://ezproxy.lib.indiana.edu/login?url=http://search.proquest.com/docview/204824773?accountid=11620
Roberts, D. (2005, Sep 28). Phoenix gives its newcomers the american dream they can afford: THE SUNBELT ECONOMY: The desert city is at the heart of a jobs and housing boom despite its lack of industry or any visible reason to be, reports dan roberts. Financial Times. Retrieved from http://ezproxy.lib.indiana.edu/login?url=http://search.proquest.com/docview/249694185?accountid=11620
