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WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 25, 2009
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NEWS ABOUT: housing

housing stories: 66 news summaries

41 - 60 of 66 Stories | << Prev 1 2 3 4 Next >>

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Economy

Existing Home Contracts Down in February

Still no sign of bottom in housing values

Apr 8, 08 1:00 PM CDT
(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. More »

MORE ABOUT:
housing market • housing • home resales • existing home sales • home values

Roomie Site Can't Match by Gender, Sex Preference

Court sees violation of fair housing laws

Apr 4, 08 7:10 AM CDT
(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... More »

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Internet • discrimination • housing • Craigslist • civil rights • website • liability • classified ads

 Home Prices, Consumer  
 Confidence Nosedive  

Housing trouble worsens as recession worries mount

Mar 25, 08 9:58 AM CDT
(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... More »

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home sales • consumer confidence • housing • recession • home prices • Case Shiller price index • housing crisis

 Cost of Bringing Up Baby: $204K 

And that doesn't include college

Mar 25, 08 9:27 AM CDT
(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... More »

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food • education • child care • children • parents • housing • USDA • child-rearing • household expenses • urban West • urban Midwest

 Boomers Move Back Home 

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

Mar 24, 08 3:06 PM CDT
(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,... More »

MORE ABOUT:
baby boomer • parents • housing • recession • unemployment • US economy • Generation X • subprime crisis

 Condo Glut Floods Cities 

Bargains abound as boom-time projects completed

Mar 22, 08 8:17 AM CDT
(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... More »

MORE ABOUT:
housing market • construction • mortgage • property • housing • condominium • housing crisis • building

Construction Spending Tumbles

Spending falls at fastest rate since 1994

Mar 3, 08 10:23 AM CST
(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... More »

MORE ABOUT:
construction • housing • recession • manufacturing • Department of Commerce • manufacturing index • ISM index • residential building • non-residential building • commerical loan standards

Bush Spars With Senators Over Housing Fixes

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

Feb 27, 08 11:56 AM CST
(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... More »

MORE ABOUT:
Senate • Arlen Specter • mortgage • Mortgage Bankers Association • housing • Federal Housing Administration • subprime crisis • Richard Durbin

B&N Chief Gives $20M
for Katrina Relief

Money will support building of 20 new houses

Feb 26, 08 8:01 PM CST
(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... More »

MORE ABOUT:
Hurricane Katrina • New Orleans • housing • houses • reconstruction • Katrina aftermath • Leonard Riggio • Louise Riggio • Barnes & Noble

Dollar Gains Slightly Against the Euro

Investors wait for latest read on vigor of
US economy

Feb 25, 08 5:34 AM CST
(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... More »

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currency exchange • housing • US economy • pound • euro • US dollar

Best Places for Home Bargains

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

Feb 13, 08 2:13 PM CST
(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:
  1. Salt Lake City: highest job growth in the country, and low foreclosure
  2. Raleigh,
... More »

MORE ABOUT:
list • foreclosure • housing • credit crisis • home prices • homeownership • cities • homeowners

Cuba's Underground Housing Boom

Socialist system camouflages complicated black market

Jan 28, 08 2:58 PM CST
(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... More »

MORE ABOUT:
real estate • Cuba • housing • Havana

Stimulus Likely To Be Recipe
for Paralysis

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

Jan 23, 08 2:41 PM CST
(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... More »

MORE ABOUT:
Nancy Pelosi • Congress • taxes • trade • housing • partisanship • US economy • economic stimulus package • George W. Bush

Housing Starts Nosedive to Lowest Level Since 1991

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

Jan 17, 08 9:15 AM CST
(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,... More »

MORE ABOUT:
construction • housing • housing starts • housing crisis • new construction • building permit

UPDATED

Big Easy Protest Turns Rough

New Orleans OK's demolition of housing despite opposition

Dec 20, 07 4:30 PM CST
(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.... More »

MORE ABOUT:
Hurricane Katrina • New Orleans • housing • Housing and Urban Development • public housing

Beijing Olympics Displacing 1.5M

13,000 a month evicted as Beijing prepares for Games

Dec 5, 07 8:19 AM CST
(Newser) - Construction projects under way for the Beijing Olympics have led to a massive number of displaced citizens—13,000 people each month, reports the AP. The Switzerland-based Center on Housing Rights and Evictions predicts that by the time the Games open next summer, 1.5 million Chinese will have been... More »

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China • 2008 Beijing Olympics • housing

How To Lose Your Home Without Missing a Payment

Renters out in the cold in mortgage crisis

Nov 18, 07 4:11 PM CST
(Newser) - When landlords default on risky subprime loans, renters are the ones left out in the cold, the New York Times reports. Thousands of renters have lost their homes, usually little suspecting they were living on precariously-financed ground. “Renters are collateral damage in the mortgage crisis,” said one lawyer.... More »

MORE ABOUT:
subprime mortgages • foreclosure • housing • subprime crisis

Paulson: Economy in Danger

Oct 16, 07 12:40 PM CDT
(Newser) - The ongoing housing implosion poses “a significant risk” to the economy, Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson said in a speech at Georgetown University today, in a sobering about-face from earlier attempts to downplay the crisis. “The ongoing housing correction is not ending as quickly as it appeared,” he... More »

MORE ABOUT:
subprime mortgages • Henry Paulson • housing • US economy • Treasury Department • housing crisis

The Oy
Next Door

New site lets users share complaints
about those
annoying neighbors

Oct 2, 07 6:14 PM CDT
(Newser) - Does your neighbor have a yard full of yappy dogs? How about a subwoofer big enough to rattle your china? Now you can report the jerk on RottenNeighbor.com, a site dedicated to letting aggrieved homeowners and renters vent—and warn those considering moving  nearby. The program uses Google Maps... More »

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New York • Los Angeles • housing • Google Maps • website • neighbors

Largest US Homebuilder Posts Biggest Losses Ever

Lennar stock drops after worse-than-expected earnings report

Sep 25, 07 10:56 AM CDT
(Newser) - The atrophied housing market has sent America’s largest homebuilder into even more of tailspin than expected. Lennar announced today it lost $513.9 million last quarter, or $3.25 per share—the worst losses in its 53-year history. Lennar says home discounting and the dismal mortgage situation will force... More »

MORE ABOUT:
housing market • subprime mortgages • housing • home prices • Lennar Corp. • housing crisis • subprime crisis

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