The question's basic premises point to the real problems that are driving the bus to Collapse ("Efficiency is the straightest road to Hell"-JHK). The real value of a house lies in whether it puts people where they are useful to that place. Consumptionism (colonialism) believes only in whether a place can be exploited by humans. The carrying capacity of any place we choose is dependent on whether we are contributing more than we take from it. Many generations have been conditioned to Believe Hard in the Invisible Hand Job of Competition as First Cause, rather than as the accelerant for civilization's ongoing arson.
Where to live? Wherever you can be useful to that place or to the other people who are.