"You write values questions people can agree or disagree to..."

"...and then you use some fancy statistical routines to be able to characterize who's in what group and how big the groups are," and then you build planned communities. Are you going to buy the house with the "culture room" and a "central paseo" and live amongst other homeowners who bought the same architectural expression of survey-derived values? Is this really any different from picking a neighborhood that grew organically to have a particular cultural flavor?

The surveys sort prospective homebuyers into "psychographic profiles":

As it turns out, there were lots of status-conscious "Winners" in Orange County, people who tended to go for the glitziest, most expensive homes in Covenant Hills. And there were a fair number of "Winners with Heart," a hybrid group of status-conscious people with a spiritual side.

There were the religiously oriented "Traditionalists," who, it was assumed, would prefer the more classic architecture there, and more family-oriented activities, such as the annual Easter egg hunt.

On the other hand, the "Cultural Creatives" tended to be more liberal-minded, environmentally oriented and "less into conspicuous consumption," Warrick said, and Terramor was built for them.

"Their houses might have a courtyard that conceals the front door, and it's kind of cozy and nest-like," he explained. "The materials might be just as expensive as what the Winner would want, but more understated."

The most interesting thing about this to me is what emerges after the people have chosen the houses. Does the Cultural Creative neighborhood really turn out to have creative people in it? Do the neighborhoods end up with people who fit the profile? Do the people within each neighborhood have better relationships because they've been grouped -- in some way -- by their values? And how different is this from the effect of more naturally evolved places -- places like University Heights in Madison, Wisconsin, where I sit and type out these words and think about moving downtown?