Photo by Simon Cunningham on Flickr.

More high-end housing can mean cheaper prices for all, the app Waze is changing the streets we use, and over 25,000 families are living in subsidized housing they’re too wealthy for. Check out what’s happening around the country in transportation, land use, and other related areas!

Housing econ 101: Supply and demand can definitely be more complex than some give it credit for, but a recent California study confirms the basics: When you build more housing to meet high demand, prices drop. That means more units that low-income people can afford. (Post)

Wazed and confused: The crowd sourced driving app Waze is changing the way we drive. People have traditionally taken the path they know best, but the new technology is making any road fair game, much to the dislike of residents of quiet streets. (Men’s Journal)

Million dollar squatter: 25,000 families are over the income limits required to stay in subsidized housing, according to a US Department of Housing and Urban Development audit. The worst offenders in New York had a household income of almost half a million dollars, far exceeding the $67K per year limit on the house in which they were living. (Boston Globe)

The NIMBY Club: Fighting NIMBYism, says Austin blogger Chris Bradford, requires an understanding of one of its key tenets: an effort to monopolize amenities in a way that maintains a “club” status. (Club NIMBY)

Third ring circus: Houston is currently building it’s third ring road called the Grand Parkway. It’s opening up more empty land to sprawl and changing the way ranch families live. (Houston Chronicle)

Cities in History: The first atlas of cities was compiled in 1572. 450 burgs were cataloged with images that could tell the reader what life there was like, as well as the growth prospects, much like an advertisement today. Is being named the location of a gruesome murder that happened in another city the ultimate in slanderous advertising? (Fast Company Design)

Quote of the week: “People in Los Angeles are lousy collaborators. Scholars in L.A. cite each other less often. Patents made in L.A. refer less frequently to other L.A.-based innovations.” Josh Stephens of the California Planning and Development Report on a new book describing in part why LA is behind San Francisco.

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Jeff Wood is the Principal of The Overhead Wire, a consulting firm focused on sharing information about cities around the world. He hosts a weekly podcast called Talking Headways at Streetsblog USA and operates the daily news site The Overhead Wire.