First up, a quickie from Coldwell Banker Real Estate: Its 2013 Home Listing Report tosses Cleveland up on the No. 1 slot for least expensive homes. Among a comparison of four-bedroom, two-bathroom homes across nearly 2,000 markets, Cleveland's average clocked in around $64,000. The same size home in Malibu, the priciest spot on the chart, sells for a hootin' and hollerin' $2.15 million.
"Cleveland's friendly, hometown feel draws people of all ages, and in recent years, the community has been revitalized with more young professionals entering the market," Ed Dolinsky, president of Coldwell Banker, says.
And, Ed, that's a terrific set-up for the next story "going viral" among Cleveland boosters this morning.
The Atlantic Cities blog, kind of a perennial fan of Rust Belt aesthetics and culture, posted a story exploring the Passion of Young Cleveland, in which the relative ease of entrepreneurship here is put on a pedestal it rightfully deserves.
A sampling of the analysis:
Cleveland is one of those Rust Belt cities that's too often held up as a symbol of the fall of American industry, but a critical mass of diehard young Clevelanders are either staying or coming back to turn the place around. While I was there, I heard two common reasons why Cleveland natives were staying loyal: It's an ideal place to start a business or a new project, given the low overhead and unusually strong, cohesive community support. But it's also in one of the most politically influential places in the country, in a bellwether, "real America" state that offers young people an opportunity to move the national needle.