A golden rule of real estate is to watch where the artists go, where culture will be thriving and chances are they will have been attracted to cool, inexpensive spaces to live and work.

In parts of Downtown Manhattan, several areas and buildings were designated as Artist in Residence buildings, often abandoned or derelict warehouse/commercial style lofts that were taken over by artists. The 1971 zoning law was created to protect the industrial lofts of neighborhoods like SoHo and NoHo after artists had moved into these lofts illegally. The zoning allowed them to live and work in these lofts. Under this law, at least one resident of the unit had to be a certified artist by the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs (DCLA), proving that art was your primary vocation and that you genuinely need a massive industrial space to create it.

Those struggling Soho artists who bought their lofts for $30,000 in the 1970's are now multi millionaires. Yes, those lofts are worth millions in today's market as neighborhoods have gentrified. And most of the artists don't care about those A.I.R. laws at all and simply seek to maximize full value in the markets as these homes often deliver a nice retirement fund. Do they care that other artists cannot afford them the way they were able to afford them? Of course not! There are very few all-artist buildings left in Soho and even those that enforce this sell for lots more than $40,000.

The reality is that those who enter the most creative parts of society to follow their passion are often those who are most certainly to be disappointed by just how hard it is to eek out a living as a creative. I applaud all those who have succeeded. These days there are many more creative outlets that actually do provide a good living. But fine art is an extremely tough and competitive arena. It's an enormous achievement. Anyone with an artistic or creative background can apply their artistic gifts to so many other endeavors, earn a healthy living and create art as a hobby.