ABSTRACT
There are some indications that new housing construction has begun to catch up with the urban population growth. Even the census figures summarizing the growth in the outlying portions of metropolitan areas and the losses or much slower growth in the urban core may understate the dispersion. The first of these revolutions, of course, is the rise of an urban way of life. The second is its diffusion and dispersal over the countryside. A development of social technology–the long-term, monthly payment mortgage loan with low interest rates–has greatly facilitated the spread of American families into single-family detached dwellings. The growth of credit arrangements of this type has certainly been encouraged and fostered by national legislation. It can be argued that the nature of the urban residential patterns of this generation has been shaped very substantially by FHA and similar governmental programs.
