I'm guessing you pay significantly more for food at these local places than you would at a big box grocery store. Plus, you're less able to buy in bulk to get those time&money savings.
The other big factor that people miss in these comparisons are schools. Generally speaking housing in dense places with good schools is usually very expensive. People that can't afford that typically have the choice between crappy urban schools or good suburban schools. Most of them choose the good schools.
>I'm guessing you pay significantly more for food at these local places than you would at a big box grocery store.
I think you have a very wrong picture of what the GP is talking about, since this is not really the case at all. We're not talking about NY-style bodegas here. In Germany for example, cut-throat discount stores like Aldi that constantly try to lower the price floor for groceries are ubiquitous and can definitely be found in dense neighborhoods. Come to think of it, a while ago I read that they started building apartment buildings with a store integrated in the ground floor because that concept works well for them.
Yeah, I have hilariously expensive convenience shop at ground floor of my apartment block. As bonus quality of products is low.
Twice the distance, 20m away there is another overpriced convenience shop but with a better quality.
I shop in supermarket about 250m away on ground floor of another apartment block that has quite good prices, good enough that it is not worth time and other costs to shop further away for many products.
> People that can't afford that typically have the choice between crappy urban schools or good suburban schools.
That sounds like USA specific problem, in Poland, Kraków all good high schools were in city center. Most of students were using bus/tram.
> I'm guessing you pay significantly more for food at these local places than you would at a big box grocery store. Plus, you're less able to buy in bulk to get those time&money savings.
Not really applicable in Poland, prices in Biedronka supermarket (closest to me is on ground level of apartment tower) are basically the same as in Auchan (big supermarket on suburbs).
> Plus, you're less able to buy in bulk to get those time&money savings.
Last time I checked any savings would be eaten by extra cost and time of going over 2km to the shop.
The other big factor that people miss in these comparisons are schools. Generally speaking housing in dense places with good schools is usually very expensive. People that can't afford that typically have the choice between crappy urban schools or good suburban schools. Most of them choose the good schools.