Housing and place in New York - a reference guide13 guides · revised August 2026

Teacherspace NY

A reference on housing, property mechanics and place

Housing and place in New York

Guides in this reference, ordered by subject group and then by the sequence in which they build on one another. Section, reading time and revision month are given for each.

HOW THE MARKET WORKS2

Guides in the how the market works group with section, reading time and revision month
GuideSectionReadingRevised
Schematic diagram of a housing market as five stacked layers, from standing stock at the base to the small flow of homes for sale at the topHow a local housing market worksStock, flow and the four actors who set the tempoHow the market works3 minAugust 2026
Schematic bar diagram comparing the relative weight of seven forces that act on house pricesWhat moves house pricesRates, incomes, supply, travel time and the things that only look like causesHow the market works3 minAugust 2026

BUYING AND SELLING4

Guides in the buying and selling group with section, reading time and revision month
GuideSectionReadingRevised
Schematic staircase diagram showing six ascending stages of a home purchaseBuying a home, step by stepFrom first budget to recorded deed, and what each stage protectsBuying and selling3 minAugust 2026
Schematic diagram of a seller's timeline as six ruled rows with a widening evidence bar in eachSelling a home, step by stepEvidence, the marketing period, chains and the mechanics of an accepted offerBuying and selling3 minAugust 2026
Schematic diagram dividing a building examination into a structural panel on the left and two service panels on the rightSurveys and inspectionsWhat each level of examination looks at, and what none of them can tell youBuying and selling3 minAugust 2026
Schematic diagram of a chain of title as a vertical spine with five branching records attached to itTitle, searches and the paper trailWhat a search actually looks for and what title insurance is really coveringBuying and selling3 minAugust 2026

MONEY AND TENURE3

Guides in the money and tenure group with section, reading time and revision month
GuideSectionReadingRevised
Schematic curve diagram showing the falling share of a mortgage payment that goes to interest as a loan amortisesMortgages in plain termsPrincipal, interest, amortisation, and the ratios a lender is actually testingMoney and tenure3 minAugust 2026
Schematic grid diagram contrasting a co-operative corporation as a single shaded block against separately owned condominium unitsCo-ops, condos and boardsHow New York's ownership forms differ once you are living in themMoney and tenure3 minAugust 2026
Schematic balance diagram weighing a renting cost block against an owning cost blockRenting versus owningThe full cost stack on both sides, and what actually decides the comparisonMoney and tenure3 minAugust 2026

PLACES4

Guides in the places group with section, reading time and revision month
GuideSectionReadingRevised
Schematic, not-to-scale map showing the New York City boroughs beside Long Island and the Hudson Valley, with three marked centresPlaces: the geography of New York housingHow the region's housing geography is organised, region by regionPlaces3 minAugust 2026
Schematic diagram of a rectangular street grid with long east-west blocks and narrow north-south lotsManhattan and the 1811 gridHow one surveying decision still governs lot sizes, buildings and rentsPlaces3 minAugust 2026
Schematic diagram of a row-house terrace as six repeated narrow bays with stoops running across themThe Brooklyn brownstone beltRow-house economics, from speculative builders to landmark districtsPlaces3 minAugust 2026
Schematic diagram of rail-led growth as settlements strung like beads along a single line, each with a walking radius around itQueens garden suburbsRail-led development, detached stock and the two-fare zonePlaces3 minAugust 2026

REFERENCE1

Guides in the reference group with section, reading time and revision month
GuideSectionReadingRevised
Schematic diagram of a definition list drawn as ruled rows with a term column and a definition columnGlossary of housing termsSixty plain-language definitions used across the guidesReference5 minAugust 2026

What moves a local market

Eight forces acting on a local housing market, the direction each pushes and the guide that explains it
ForceHow it actsExplained in
Mortgage ratesMove affordability fastest, in both directionsWhat moves house prices
Local incomesSet the long-run ceiling on pricesWhat moves house prices
Supply pipelineAdds competing homes, with a lag of yearsHow a local housing market works
TurnoverDecides how much price evidence exists at allHow a local housing market works
Travel timePrices access to work rather than distancePlaces
Monthly chargesAre capitalised into the price paidCo-ops, condos and boards
Credit standardsDecide who may bid, independent of the rateMortgages in plain terms
Transaction costsDecide whether owning beats renting over timeRenting versus owning