new construction

11 Stories

He Signed $400K Deal for Home, Was Told to Pay Another $100K

'Toronto Life' explores the chaotic world of Ontario real estate

(Newser) - Toronto is certainly not the only city in recent years to experience a building boom and soaring home prices. Nor is it the only place whose construction industry was upended by pandemic-related supply and labor crunches. But the greater Toronto area had a shortage of affordable housing long before the...

No Relief for Homeowners With Rotting Chinese Drywall
No Relief for Homeowners With Rotting Chinese Drywall
HOME, STINKY HOME
Sep 18, 2010 8:09 AM CDT

No Relief for Homeowners With Rotting Chinese Drywall

Many seek alternate shelter; others have to tough it out

(Newser) - Their homes stink like rotten eggs, appliances constantly malfunction, and anything metal turns black and corrodes, but the headaches (and other illnesses) don't end there for homeowners with Chinese drywall, reports the New York Times. Though thousands of lawsuits have been filed, insurance companies aren't paying, homebuilders largely aren't stepping...

Habitat for Humanity Cracks Top 10 List of US Builders
Habitat for Humanity Cracks Top 10 List of US Builders 
sign of the times dept
Jul 2, 2010 8:25 AM CDT

Habitat for Humanity Cracks Top 10 List of US Builders

Housing bust is killing public construction companies

(Newser) - How badly are home builders hurting? Here's a hint: Habitat for Humanity has cracked the top 10 list of US builders for the first time. The nonprofit, which relies largely on volunteers to build homes for low-income people, ranked 8th in the Builder magazine list, ahead of some of the...

Church Foreclosures Soar Heavenward

Houses of worship ensnared by same shifty credit as homeowners

(Newser) - Homeowners and banks aren’t the only ones laid low by the reckless mortgage market of years past, as churches across the nation teeter on the brink of foreclosure. Houses of worship ensnared by the promise of low rates and big loans set out on a spree of new construction,...

Builders Are Building Again, Despite Risk
 Builders Are Building 
 Again, Despite Risk 
ANALYSIS
Aug 11, 2009 1:08 PM CDT

Builders Are Building Again, Despite Risk

(Newser) - A decrease in vacant housing inventory and an uptick in sales have home builders ramping up construction for the first time in months, Time reports. Currently, the number of new homes on the market would take an estimated 8.8 months to sell—a far cry from the standard of...

Dubai High Rise Would Add Novel Twists

Revolving floors just one of 80-story tower's planned innovations

(Newser) - If heights make your head spin, a planned 80-story tower in Dubai might not be the place for you. Set to be the "world's first building in motion," David Fisher's design features doughnut-shape floors that rotate 360 degrees around a fixed cement core, the AP reports. It would...

Daring Architecture Energizes Beijing
 Daring Architecture 
 Energizes Beijing 
glossies
Jun 25, 2008 5:30 PM CDT

Daring Architecture Energizes Beijing

Some buildings work, some don't, but overall vibe among residents is a good one

(Newser) - Some of the world’s most adventurous architects have found a gung-ho partner in Beijing, the most noticable payoff being the soon-to-be completed CCTV headquarters—"a dazzling reinvention of the skyscraper," writes Paul Goldberger in the New Yorker. Other creations, such as an ovoid peforming arts center dismissed...

Housing Starts Hit 17-Year Low

March starts plummet 11.9% as foreclosures create glut on market

(Newser) - Foreclosures and a glut of unsold homes flooding the market were blamed for an 11.9% drop in new housing starts last month, more than twice the slide economists had predicted, reports Bloomberg. Starts are at the lowest level since March 1991, according to the Commerce Department, casting a pall...

Building Costs Pinch Budgets
Building Costs Pinch Budgets
Jan 26, 2008 12:43 PM CST

Building Costs Pinch Budgets

State and local government now struggling to pay for new projects

(Newser) - Rising interest rates, falling tax revenues, and construction costs that have skyrocketed are causing local and state governments to rethink projects as diverse as building new schools, repairing bridges, and roads, even constructing new levees in the Everglades, reports the New York Times. Experts say fast-growing global economies are also...

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,...

Chicago's Spire Condos May Be a Tough Sell

Developer plunges pricey skyscraper into lousy housing market

(Newser) - The Chicago Spire residential tower isn't even under construction yet, but its luxury condos—slated to be sold for unprecedented prices—will come face-to-face with a lousy housing market when the sales office opens today. Prices for units in the twisting skyscraper start at $1,400 per square foot, but...

11 Stories