Using data from the Panel Study of Income Dynamics and a seven-category neighborhood typology, this analysis examines the relationship between urban form and household spending. Results suggest that poor households living in urban areas have lower transportation expenditures than their counterparts in sprawling suburbs. Lower transportation costs, however, do not offset high housing prices, with poor households paying particularly high premiums for housing in the densest, most transit-rich neighborhoods. Households above the poverty threshold also benefit from reductions in transportation costs, especially in intensely urban areas. Nevertheless, these low transportation costs are not associated with lower overall expenditures; instead, they countervail high housing premiums, meaning that the most transit-rich neighborhoods do not offer cost savings relative to other neighborhood types. Findings highlight the need to expand the supply of both transit and housing in communities where poor households can leverage affordable transportation options to reduce their combined expenditure burden.

使用收入动态小组研究和七类社区类型学的数据，该分析检验了城市形态与家庭支出之间的关系。结果表明，生活在城市地区的贫困家庭的交通支出低于广阔郊区的贫困家庭。然而，较低的交通成本并不能抵消高房价，贫困家庭在最密集、交通最发达的社区为住房支付特别高的保费。贫困线以上的家庭也受益于交通成本的降低，尤其是在人口密集的城市地区。然而，这些低运输成本与较低的总支出无关；相反，它们抵消了高昂的住房保费，这意味着与其他社区类型相比，交通最为便利的社区不会节省成本。调查结果强调需要扩大社区的交通和住房供应，贫困家庭可以利用负担得起的交通选择来减少他们的综合支出负担。