property values

16 Stories

Neighbor to Cops: Stop 'Illegal' Lemonade Stand

TJ Guerrero, 12, runs his own stand in Dunedin, Fla.

(Newser) - Nothing like an entrepreneurial kid running a lemonade stand on the lawn—unless you're his angry neighbor, that is. Doug Wilkey of Dunedin, Fla., has been complaining for two years about 12-year-old TJ Guerrero's lemonade stand next door, Gawker reports. Wilkey emailed City Hall several times and reached...

Home Prices Take Biggest Jump Since 2006

Up 12.2% in May compared with a year ago

(Newser) - US home prices jumped 12.2% in May compared with a year ago, per the Standard & Poor's/Case-Shiller index of property values; that's the biggest yearly gain since March 2006, reports the AP . The highlights didn't stop there: Bloomberg reports that each of the 20 cities in...

Singapore Home's Record Price: $242M

Dwarfs top US listing for $135M

(Newser) - A 85,000-square-foot property in downtown Singapore has hit the market for a record price of $242 million, Bloomberg reports. It includes a two-story home, a tennis court, and a pool, the marketing agent says—though sellers are betting developers may want to divide up the property, which is in...

Rents Hit Record Highs, Vacancies at 10-Year Lows

People avoiding buying keeps demand high for rental properties

(Newser) - With would-be homebuyers continuing to sit on the sidelines, rental vacancies dropped to a 10-year low last quarter, driving up rental prices to record levels around the United States, reports the Wall Street Journal . Rental prices have reached record highs in 74 of 82 markets measured by real estate tracking...

Singapore Drops Incentives to Lure Rich Foreigners

Natives became angry after property values spike

(Newser) - Sorry, rich folks. Singapore apparently has enough millionaires for now and is no longer holding the door open quite so widely to attract more from other countries. The nation is scrapping a program that allowed wealthy foreigners to get fast-track permanent residency provided they kept enough money in Singaporean banks...

Hey, Landlords: Plant a Tree, Then Jack Rent

Properties go for about $5 more a month if they have a tree: Study

(Newser) - Landlords, grab your shovels. Having a tree on your property translates to an extra $5.62 a month in rent. So say two researchers (one of them from the Forest Service) who played around with Craigslist apartment listings in Portland, Oregon, along with tree data on Google Earth, reports Good ...

Millions Considering Walking Away From Mortgages

10% of mortgages expected to be underwater by June

(Newser) - The long slide in property values has left huge numbers of homeowners considering just walking away from their mortgages. People start thinking about jumping ship when their home value falls below 75% of what they paid for it, according to new research. Over 5 million Americans are expected to be...

China May Invest in Bargain US Real Estate

Sovereign-wealth fund to ramp up spending after quiet 2008

(Newser) - China’s sovereign-wealth fund has its eyes on US real estate, the Wall Street Journal reports. China Investment Corp. laid low throughout 2008 as the global economy teetered but is now opening its coffers. And depressed US commercial property values—off 35% from their peak—coupled with cheap government financing,...

Plunging Property Taxes Bleed Government Coffers

(Newser) - From New York and Los Angeles to devastated Rust Belt towns, falling home prices are leaving local governments in a pinch, the New York Times reports. Desperate for extra cash, homeowners are petitioning assessors in droves to lower their property taxes and match property values. “It’s worthy of...

Manhattan Apartment Prices Tumble
Manhattan Apartment Prices Tumble
Apr 2, 2009 6:27 AM CDT

Manhattan Apartment Prices Tumble

Financial crisis sends values down double digits in first quarter

(Newser) - Wall Street's problems have chucked a bucket of cold water over Manhattan's once overheated property market, Reuters reports. The median price of a Manhattan apartment dived 11% to $749,000 in the first quarter, according to a report released today by the Corcoran Group, New York's largest brokerage. Analysts expect...

Crisis Pounds Ireland— and Its Beer

Deteriorating economy drives away foreign investors

(Newser) - If there's a sure sign that Ireland's vaunted Celtic Tiger economy has been reduced to a mewling kitten, it's Guinness' sudden cold feet on its planned $1 billion "superbrewery," reports the Wall Street Journal. Once the black-gold proof of Ireland's boom, the premium beer brand has been hit...

Home Prices Take Another Nose-Dive

Fall record 18% in year to October

(Newser) - Home prices in 20 US cities plunged 18% in October over the previous year, a record-breaking rate, Bloomberg reports. The S&P/Case-Shiller index, which has declined every month since January 2007, dropped 17.2% in September. "The bear market continues; home prices are back to their March 2004 levels,...

'Everyday' Palins Worth About $1.2M
 'Everyday' Palins 
 Worth About $1.2M 
ANALYSIS
Oct 2, 2008 2:10 PM CDT

'Everyday' Palins Worth About $1.2M

2007 income tops $250K; salaries, fishing rights, handful of properties add up

(Newser) - Financial reports show that, while they’re no John and Cindy McCain, the Palin family is much more well-off than the average American, the AP reports, worth about $1.2 million. The Alaska governor and her husband together appear to have made more than $250,000 last year, from her...

Disney Fever Sweeps Shanghai
 Disney Fever Sweeps Shanghai  
Jul 26, 2008 9:23 AM CDT

Disney Fever Sweeps Shanghai

Residents scooping up property, hoping for a payoff if city gets theme park

(Newser) - As rumors fly about Disney’s interest in building a theme park in Shanghai, residents are already taking action to profit from the project. They're adding on to their property and establishing false businesses, figuring they’ll be compensated for the loss of such holdings if Disney takes control of...

'Evangelist' Renter: Time to Buy
 'Evangelist' Renter: Time to Buy 
ANALYSIS
May 28, 2008 8:32 AM CDT

'Evangelist' Renter: Time to Buy

NYT analyst says buying begins to make sense again

(Newser) - As property prices head back down, a self-proclaimed "evangelist" of renting is trading in the lease for a mortgage. David Leonhardt of the New York Times has been advising people for years not to buy a home and get their money tied up in a housing bubble, but he...

Consumer Spending Stalls Again
Consumer Spending Stalls Again
Feb 29, 2008 12:03 PM CST

Consumer Spending Stalls Again

Confidence is falling as inflation rises

(Newser) - Consumer spending rose more than expected in January—but only because prices did so as well, Bloomberg reports. Adjusted for inflation, spending remained flat for the second straight month. With fuel costs rising, banks restricting loans, and property values falling, “consumers are clearly hard-pressed to maintain their standard of...

16 Stories