>  ML> the average house in Detroit is worth 60K
> 
> Way up from the 2008 crash but still a very depressed market.
>
Prices here in CT are coming back up but only a few towns are 
increasing. 
 
>  RH That same house in Boston would be 300K, is my guess.
> 
>  ML> More like 4 or 5, but who's counting.
> 
> I have quick and easy access to housing stats throughout North
> America. The median price in Boston is $585,000.

Ouch. I'm not surprised though.
 
> RH> tack another 100 thou on the front in San Francisco.
> 
> You underestimate: the median price is currently $1.3M. 

So Michael said. No wonder their homeless rates are sky high.  Even 
folks with jobs can't afford to buy anything. Or even rent it.
 
> Your national average cost to build is $150 psf. The rest is land
> value which is based on location desirability more than actual
> development costs. In other words people prefer to live in San
> Francisco than Detroit for some reason, given a choice.

No snow?