The class decided to create a price index from a basket of goods common across all neighborhoods— a slice of pizza, rent for a studio apartment, cup of coffee, bacon, egg and cheese sandwich, and a pineapple. Our result reflect the average cost of life in each neighborhood and provide an organized method of analyzing the effect of gentrification on each neighborhood.
After collecting our data, Williamsburg came to be the most expensive neighborhood— beating out almost all others in each product. Since Williamsburg began the process of gentrification much earlier than the other neighborhoods, we can assume that the cost of living in the neighborhood would be reflected in our index. More affluent people live in Williamsburg than any other neighborhood in our index and thus businesses charge a premium markup. East Harlem, which recently began to experience gentrification and doesn’t reflect the high prices of its gentrified counterparts. An outlier was found in the Bacon, Egg, and Cheese in East Harlem, which may be a result of collecting data from upscale delis or the lack of affordable delis.
Overall, the index synthesizes the cost of life in gentrifying neighborhoods and gives us a snapshot of the difference amongst neighborhoods. An in depth discussion of these difference is found in the research of each neighborhood.
