McMansion Era May Be Over

Average home size declines in what analysts call 'right-sizing'

(NEWSER) - Confirming what industry professionals have long suspected, builders and buyers alike are foregoing super-sized “McMansions” for smaller, more economical homes, the Wall Street Journal reports. The average home started in 2008’s third quarter was 2,438 square feet, down from 2,629 in the second quarter. The median home size also declined, to 2,090 square feet in the third quarter, from 2,291 in the second. More»

Housing market gloom is over-hyped

(NEWSER) - Has the housing crisis scared you out of the market? Too bad, because there are still many good reasons to buy, writes Brett Arends in the Wall Street Journal . A few points to consider before hopping on the first train to rents-ville:

• You could get a deal: Prices are down—way down. "This is a buyer's market," Arends writes, especially if you're willing to play hardball. Could prices drop more? Sure. But that "doesn't really matter so much in the long haul."
• You'll save on taxes: Usually, "the breaks are more valuable the more you earn, and the bigger your mortgage," Arends says. So run the numbers—you could save on income, real estate, and capital gains taxes.

First study to count homeless over a full year finds numbers down 15% in '07

(NEWSER) - The number of chronically homeless Americans fell by 15% last year, a study has found. The survey is the first to track homelessness over a full year, the Los Angeles Times reports. Homeless advocates argue that the promising numbers may in part be due to different counting methods—and that a flood of foreclosures threaten a new wave of homelessness. More»

Many demolitions, huge budget, no benefits

(NEWSER) - Lamenting the lack of progress in another urban redevelopment project, Karen Heller takes aim at the Pennsylvania Convention Center expansion in the Philadelphia Inquirer. The Center expansion has been in the works since 1993, spurring numerous building demolitions, but few new constructions: in short, North Broad Street, advertised as a coming “avenue of the arts” is closer to “the Boulevard of Parking.” More»

Charity makes dent with farms in desolate Detroit neighborhoods

(NEWSER) - An ambitious charity thinks it can turn Detroit’s most desolate neighborhoods into bustling farming utopias. The group, dubbed Urban Farming, grows vegetables on vacant land throughout the city, then gives them out for free to local residents, the BBC reports. Parts of Motor City have been transformed by its efforts, and now it’s branching out across the US. More»