housing – News Stories About housing - Page 5

Rangel Enjoys Sweet Deal
on 4 Harlem Apartments

Jul 11, 2008 2:35 AM CDT

Rangel Enjoys Sweet Deal on 4 Harlem Apartments

Dem faces questions over big savings on rent

(Newser) - A powerful Democratic lawmaker is getting a sweet deal on four Harlem apartments, the New York Times reports. Charles Rangel has four rent-stabilized apartments, whose rents are controlled by city law. Three of the apartments are combined into one luxury unit, and the fourth is used as an office—despite...

New Israeli Settlements Have 'Negative Effect': Rice

Jun 15, 2008 3:34 PM CDT

New Israeli Settlements Have 'Negative Effect': Rice

She warns against building 1,300 new units in Jerusalem

(Newser) - Condoleezza Rice said today that Israeli settlement building is having a “negative effect” on Mideast peace talks, the AP reports. “It’s important to have an atmosphere of confidence and trust,” she said at a news conference with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas. She warned against Israel’s...

Foreclosures Surge 48% in May

Jun 13, 2008 9:35 AM CDT

Foreclosures Surge 48% in May

It's the second straight monthly record

(Newser) - The number of US homeowners swept up in the housing crisis rose further last month, with foreclosure filings up 48% over a year earlier. Nationwide, 261,255 homes received at least one foreclosure-related filing in May, up 7% from April and the second straight monthly record. That's one in every...

Philly Best for Young Grads

May 1, 2008 8:29 PM CDT

Philly Best for Young Grads

City of Brotherly Love has many of New York's charms—but at a big discount

(Newser) - Cheesesteaks aren’t the only things luring young people to the City of Brotherly Love, MSNBC reports. A survey by Apartments.com and Careerbuilder that factors in the cost of apartments, job opportunities, and the number of 20-somethings, puts Philadelphia—$962 for a one-bedroom compared with $1,520 in NYC—...

Cuba Loosens Limits on Home Ownership, Salaries

Apr 12, 2008 7:59 AM CDT

Cuba Loosens Limits on Home Ownership, Salaries

State workers can now own houses; salary cap is gone

(Newser) - Raul Castro continues to lighten up on some of Cuba's least popular restrictions, ending salary caps and allowing retiring state workers to take title to the homes they live in. Government employees, including members of the military, sugar and construction workers, doctors, and teachers, will now be able keep their...

Existing Home Contracts Down in February

Economy

Apr 8, 2008 1:00 PM CDT

Existing Home Contracts Down in February

Still no sign of bottom in housing values

(Newser) - Contracts to buy previously owned homes declined 1.9% in February, according to the National Association of Realtors’ index, which fell to its lowest levels since its creation in 2001. The drop was nearly double the 1% decline analysts predicted, reports Bloomberg, and sent stocks tumbling further.

Roomie Site Can't Match by Gender, Sex Preference

Apr 4, 2008 7:10 AM CDT

Roomie Site Can't Match by Gender, Sex Preference

Court sees violation of fair housing laws

(Newser) - Roommates.com is violating fair-housing laws by asking users their gender, sexual preference, and whether they have children, and using that information to match them, a US Court of Appeals ruled yesterday. Judges said such questions would be illegal if a real estate agent asked them over the phone...

Home Prices, Consumer
Confidence Nosedive

Mar 25, 2008 9:58 AM CDT

Home Prices, Consumer Confidence Nosedive

Housing trouble worsens as recession worries mount

(Newser) - Home prices plummeted again in January, falling a record 10.7% compared to January 2007, according to the bellwether S&P Case/Shiller Hope Price composite. The March consumer confidence index, also out today, plunged to a 5-year low in yet another indication of recession, Bloomberg reports. The Conference Board measures...

Cost of Bringing Up Baby: $204K

Mar 25, 2008 9:27 AM CDT

Cost of Bringing Up Baby: $204K

And that doesn't include college

(Newser) - Raising that little bundle of joy will come with a not-so-cute $204,060 price tag for middle-income families, according to a new government study. Factoring in inflation, the parents of a child born in 2007 can expect to spend $269,040 by the time that baby turns 18. Actual costs...

Boomers Move Back Home

Mar 24, 2008 3:06 PM CDT

Boomers Move Back Home

Shaky economy has more children living with their parents—even at age 50

(Newser) - Young people have long fled recessionary job markets by moving back home, but the current crisis has a new demographic scurrying there: the middle-aged. "This is not like, 'OK, my son just graduated from college and needs to move back in' type of thing," says one financial planner,...

Condo Glut Floods Cities

Mar 22, 2008 8:17 AM CDT

Condo Glut Floods Cities

Bargains abound as boom-time projects completed

(Newser) - A deluge of new condos is about to hit many American cities already flooded with an unprecedented number of unsold units, the Wall Street Journal reports. This year, thousands of projects started at the height of the housing boom will be completed; oversupply and economic slowdown are likely to cause...

Construction Spending Tumbles

Mar 3, 2008 10:23 AM CST

Construction Spending Tumbles

Spending falls at fastest rate since 1994

(Newser) - Construction spending fell at its fastest rate in 14 years in January, the Commerce Department announced today, shattering expectations with a 1.7% drop. Analysts had expected just a 0.7% decline, the Wall Street Journal reports. Residential spending was the big drag, falling 2.9%, but non-residential spending was...

Bush Spars With Senators Over Housing Fixes

Feb 27, 2008 11:56 AM CST

Bush Spars With Senators Over Housing Fixes

Democrats and Republicans push to go further; feds don't want 'bailout'

(Newser) - Congressional Democrats are pushing for new bankruptcy rules to help homeowners suffering from the mortgage crisis, the Washington Post reports—though the White House says it will veto any plan that could hurt lenders and send mortgage rates upward. Democrats say enough Republicans from hard-hit states could join them in...

B&N Chief Gives $20M
for Katrina Relief

Feb 26, 2008 8:01 PM CST

B&N Chief Gives $20M for Katrina Relief

Money will support building of 20 new houses

(Newser) - The chair of Barnes & Noble and his wife are donating $20 million to New Orleans in what may be the biggest Katrina relief project yet, the AP reports. Leonard Riggio said today that the funds will build 20 new houses in a racially mixed neighborhood for lower-income families. Those...

Dollar Gains Slightly Against the Euro

Feb 25, 2008 5:34 AM CST

Dollar Gains Slightly Against the Euro

Investors wait for latest read on vigor of US economy

(Newser) - European markets saw the US dollar edge higher against the euro, yen and British pound today as traders looked for clues as to whether the US economy would avoid a recession, reports the Associated Press. Today’s report on January sales of existing homes will likely cast some light on...

Best Places for Home Bargains

Feb 13, 2008 2:13 PM CST

Best Places for Home Bargains

Plenty of opportunity exists for money-minded buyers, Forbes says

(Newser) - Certain housing markets are better than others for bargain-hunters, Forbes reports, and they're generally the ones with a glut of homes, strong job growth, and a low rate of foreclosures. Forbes rattles off its top 10:

Salt Lake City: highest job growth in the country, and low foreclosure
Raleigh, NC:

...

Cuba's Underground Housing Boom

Jan 28, 2008 2:58 PM CST

Cuba's Underground Housing Boom

Socialist system camouflages complicated black market

(Newser) - A booming black market in real estate is operating in Cuba, even though the government owns most property. Prices are soaring as property changes hands in a complex, illegal system called permuta, reports the New York Times. Housing swaps are permitted in Cuba, with government approval; permuta involves trading up...

Stimulus Likely To Be Recipe
for Paralysis

Jan 23, 2008 2:41 PM CST

Stimulus Likely To Be Recipe for Paralysis

Parties in sync now, but 'Act 2' sure to be partisan bickering

(Newser) - Get ready for that glow to wear off: The good feeling on Capitol Hill over a stimulus package will end as soon as the first deal is done, with Republicans and Democrats digging in on various economic cures. The next legislative round, Politico reports, will likely see GOPers fighting to...

Housing Starts Nosedive to Lowest Level Since 1991

Jan 17, 2008 9:15 AM CST

Housing Starts Nosedive to Lowest Level Since 1991

Can you even remember the last time a housing report wasn't worse-than-expected?

(Newser) - Housing starts plunged 14% in December, demolishing median analyst estimates, which foresaw a mere 5% dip. November’s numbers were also revised down, reports the Wall Street Journal, from the 3.7% drop originally reported to 7.9%. When the dust settled, construction was at its lowest point since 1991,...

Big Easy Protest Turns Rough

UPDATED

Dec 20, 2007 4:30 PM CST

Big Easy Protest Turns Rough

New Orleans OK's demolition of housing despite opposition

(Newser) - Police used pepper spray and stun guns on protesters in New Orleans attempting to push their way into a City Council meeting over the impending demolition of 4,500 public housing units damaged by Katrina. Local activists oppose HUD's push to raze the houses to make room for mixed-income neighborhoods....