![]() ![]() ![]() But construction delays, the bankruptcy of one of his financial partners and other problems have left Levitt with massive debts. He planned three major developments to build a total of 40,000 homes. Beginning in the late 1970s, Levitt thought he could duplicate his magic, this time in the area of Orlando, Fla. The man who became a millionaire by building low-cost housing has found himself strapped for cash in recent years. The story of Levitt himself, now 81, is even more poignant. And the minimum price of a house there was closing in on $200,000, making Levittown-once the answer to affordable housing-too exclusive for many would-be homeowners. Recently, individual property taxes there have soared because there is almost no commercial tax base. Levittown hasn’t been free of problems, however. Levittown also was unusual because it was not centered around a particular industry or company that provided most of the community’s employment. In the intervening decades, however, homeowners have made additions and added landscaping that dulled the cookie-cutter look of the area. Levitt used assembly line methods and prefabricated parts to speed production and, despite some minor differences in facades, the homes were nearly identical. ![]() Articles and forum discussions started by our community. Shipping Varies (Free shipping Over 100.00) 38.99. All of this formed the foundation for today’s “master-planned communities” such as Valencia, 35 miles north of Los Angeles. Shipping Varies (Free shipping Over 25.00) 94.40: Shipping Varies (Free shipping Over 25.00) Legendesque. Levitt also added schools and shopping centers based on a central plan, and families had to abide by certain rules, such as mowing their lawns every week. The houses’ low cost prompted some planners and sociologists to warn that Levittown was a suburban slum in the making. On average, Levitt’s builders finished 12 houses per day, and the tract house was here to stay. Levitt built 17,447 houses in the next four years. About 10 miles east of New York, on a potato field in Long Island, Levitt began building rows of relatively inexpensive two-bedroom houses at breakneck speed.Īvailable only to World War II veterans and their families-and only white veterans at that-the first Levittown house cost $6,990 with nearly no money down. The suburbs? They were mostly for the rich and upper-middle class.īut that year, a construction firm named Levitt & Sons, led by William J. Many veterans and their young families were forced to live with relatives, often in cramped city apartments. The GIs were home from World War II, and housing was in short supply. ![]()
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