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☆ Mortgage rates plunge to lowest level in more than a year
▼ + stars: | 2024-08-08 | by ( Bryan Mena | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +5 min

Washington CNN —US mortgage rates plummeted this week after weaker-than-expected employment data raised the odds of the Federal Reserve cutting interest rates next month. The standard 30-year fixed-rate mortgage averaged 6.47% this week, mortgage financing giant Freddie Mac said Thursday. Mortgage rates have steadily fallen over the past several weeks since reaching a 2024 peak of 7.22% in early May. Mortgage rates track the benchmark 10-year US Treasury yield, which moves in anticipation of the Fed’s decision on interest rates. Lower mortgage rates and a bigger housing stock will eventually entice more buyers to eventually enter the market.

Persons: Freddie Mac, That’s, ”, Sam Khater, Freddie Mac’s, “ Homebuyers, ” Lawrence Yun, Lisa Sturtevant, “ Organizations: Washington CNN, Federal Reserve, Las, P Global, Harvard Joint Center for Housing Studies, CNN, Treasury, National Association of Realtors, Fed, NAR, “, Bright MLS Locations: New York, San Diego, Las Vegas, Tampa, Denver, Minneapolis, United States

☆ Small Landlords Are Using New Tech Tools to Raise Tenants Rents
▼ + stars: | 2024-07-17 | by ( James Rodriguez | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +14 min

The past few years have solidified single-family rental homes as genuine moneymaking enterprises, not just ho-hum nest eggs. Related storiesWhen everyone was scrambling for their piece of the suburbs during the pandemic, mom-and-pop landlords pounced, using these newfound tools to collect more cash. The company, which estimates only one-fourth of single-family-rental landlords use professional management services, now manages more than 28,000 rentals on behalf of small landlords. As the Wall Street ethos trickles down to small rental owners, it'll be harder and harder to tell them apart. But the gap is narrowing as small rental owners capitalize on the innovations that the institutional class has already embraced.

Persons: Daniel doesn't, Daniel, hasn't, he's, Bryan Smith, —, Zers, John Burns, Rick Palacios Jr, Palacios, Jordan Kavana, Rich Ford, you've, Ford, Devin Redmond, doesn't, Philip Garboden, It's, Garboden, Roofstock Organizations: Atlanta, Corporate, Harvard Joint Center for Housing Studies, John Burns Research, Consulting, Ark Homes, Rent, Vesta Ventures, University of Chicago Locations: Zillow, Atlanta, Raleigh, Chattanooga , Tennessee, Grand Rapids , Michigan

☆ Biden announces plan to cap rent increases at 5% for half of American rental households
▼ + stars: | 2024-07-16 | by ( Eliza Relman | Dan Latu | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

Read previewPresident Joe Biden on Tuesday rolled out a plan offering landlords a choice: cap annual rent increases at 5% for the next two years or risk losing valuable tax credits. These landlords control more than half the national rental market, according to senior White House officials. Corporate landlords who increase rent by more than 5% would lose the valuable tax benefit known as depreciation deductions. AdvertisementA focus on housing affordabilityAs president, Biden has pushed a series of pro-housing policies and generally favored more federal participation in housing policy. Tuesday's move is part of a series of recent housing policy announcements from the administration.

Persons: —, Joe Biden, Lael Brainard, Biden, Donald Trump, alledgedly colluding, Kamala Harris, Janet Yellen Organizations: Service, White House, Business, Harvard Joint Center for Housing Studies, Harvard, Tax, Republicans, Union Locations: Nevada, Clark County, Henderson , Nevada, State

☆ How a Montana retiree will save on spiking home insurance and taxes by living in a type of housing that's illegal in many places
▼ + stars: | 2024-07-16 | by ( Eliza Relman | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +7 min

While her house is paid off, her home-related costs, including insurance, property taxes, and maintenance, have risen. In 2019, her home insurance cost about $890, but last year, according to her record-keeping, she paid almost $1,500. Increasingly, cities and states across the country are legalizing and even incentivizing ADU construction as a way to boost the supply of smaller, more affordable homes. Courtesy of SylviaThis comes as older people, including homeowners, are struggling with rising housing costs in communities across the country. But property taxes and insurance costs are also way up, making it hard for many homeowners to afford their payments.

Persons: —, Sylvia, She's, who's, I'm, it's, ADUs —, Sylvia ADUs, ADUs, Policygenius, Beverly Dashnaw Organizations: Service, Business, BI, Harvard Joint Center for Housing Studies Locations: Arizona, Missoula , Montana, California, Montana, Missoula, ADUs, In Montana, Helena

☆ Montana's housing crisis is a warning for older homeowners across the country
▼ + stars: | 2024-07-10 | by ( Eliza Relman | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +7 min

Older homeowners who live on fixed incomes are having a particularly hard time managing these rising costs. She blames rising property taxes and insurance costs but notes that inflation, in general, has also squeezed those on fixed incomes. Older homeowners are struggling in communities across the country. AdvertisementThe housing affordability crisis comes as the country is also facing a retirement crisis. AdvertisementMany older homeowners forced out of their housing end up unhoused, part of a growing homeless population in the state.

Persons: —, Beverly Dashnaw, she's, Montana, Policygenius, Dashnaw, it's, Greg Gianforte, Gianforte, you've Organizations: Service, Business, Harvard Joint Center for Housing Studies, Republican, American Locations: Montana

☆ The US cities where renters are struggling the most
▼ + stars: | 2024-07-02 | by ( John Towfighi | Eliza Relman | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Related storiesIn Florida, there are five metro areas where more than 60% of renters are cost-burdened. Two Pennsylvania metro areas were in the top 10 for the highest percentage of cost-burdened renters: State College and East Stroudsburg, at 63% and 61%, respectively. According to the Harvard report, 45% of renters in Stillwater, Oklahoma, are severely cost-burdened, the highest percentage in the nation. AdvertisementCorvallis, Oregon; Port St. Lucie, Florida; and State College, Pennsylvania, are the three metro areas that are in the top 10 for both cost-burdened and severely cost-burdened renters. Home prices and mortgage interest rates have surged in recent years, putting homeownership out of reach for even more renters.

Persons: —, Alexander Hermann, erelman@businessinsider.com Organizations: Service, Harvard Joint Center for Housing Studies, Business, Harvard, Harvard's, for Housing, State College, East, State College , Locations: Naples , Florida, Corvallis , Oregon, Florida, Naples, Marco, Port St, Lucie , Florida, Pennsylvania, East Stroudsburg, Stillwater , Oklahoma, State College , Pennsylvania

☆ Some homeowners are doing surprisingly badly, even as their homes grow more valuable than ever
▼ + stars: | 2024-06-23 | by ( Eliza Relman | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +1 min

A severe housing shortage has made both buying and renting increasingly unaffordable. Harvard report finds cost-burdened homeowners rose by three million from 2019 to 2022. download the app Email address Sign up By clicking “Sign Up”, you accept our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy . A severe shortage of housing, high mortgage interest rates, and strong demand from a growing number of new households have made it increasingly unaffordable to put a roof over your head. The only group that seems to be faring well through this housing crisis are homeowners who locked in low-interest mortgages before rates began soaring two years ago.

Persons: — Organizations: Service, Harvard Joint Center for Housing Studies, Business Locations: Harvard

The number of affordable units — with rents under $600 — also dropped to 7.2 million that year, 2.1 million fewer than a decade earlier. Photos You Should See View All 45 ImagesThose factors contributed to a dramatic rise in eviction filings and a record number of people becoming homeless. "It just hits you like, ‘This is for nothing.’"In Auburn, Massachusetts, pervasive rent hikes have already hit the last bastion of affordable housing. Just off an interstate alongside a pond, residents at the American Mobile Home Park face rent increases upwards of 40%. The group Lawyers For Civil Rights has sent a letter to the landlord accusing it of “unconscionable rent increases," and failing to provide critical services like adequate garbage and snow removal.

Persons: Caitlyn Colbert, Colbert, “, ”, —, Whitney Airgood, Obrycki, ” Colbert, haven’t, Amy Case, Ann Urbanovitch, Zach Neumann, Monique Gant, Gant, Nick Graetz, ” Graetz, Chris Herbert, Jared Polis, ___ Casey, ___ Organizations: DENVER, Harvard Joint Center for Housing Studies, Harvard, Habitat, Humanity, American Mobile, Civil Rights, Associated Press, Colorado Judicial, Community Economic Defense, Princeton, ”, Colorado Gov, America Statehouse News Initiative, America Locations: Denver, U.S, ”, Auburn , Massachusetts, Colorado, Washington, Massachusetts, Boston

☆ Rent is unaffordable for over half of US tenants, but the cost is cooling
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-30 | by ( Anna Bahney | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +5 min

The median asking rent was $1,713, which was down $4 from November and down $63 from the July 2022 peak. However, median rent is still $309 higher than the same time in 2019, before the pandemic. What’s more, 12 million of those renters are severely cost burdened, which means they are paying more than half of their income on housing. Following changes in housing needs during the pandemic and an already existing low supply of multifamily housing in some markets, rents surged in 2021 and 2022. Without continued new supply in addition to enhanced rental support, the Harvard report concludes affordability will remain a critical concern for many renters.

Persons: Chris Herbert, ”, Whitney Airgood, Douglas Elliman, Miller Samuel Real, “, Anthemos Georgiades, ” Georgiades Organizations: DC CNN, Harvard University’s, for Housing Studies, Harvard Joint Center for Housing Studies, Harvard, Census Bureau, Builders, National Association of Home Builders, Baby Boomers Locations: Washington, United States, Manhattan

☆ People are using cash transfers like basic income to pay rent, and it shows just how badly a housing-crisis solution is needed
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-21 | by ( Eliza Relman | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +7 min

And a growing number of people who are eligible for government housing assistance aren't getting it. But unlike other government benefits like Medicaid and food stamps, housing aid doesn't automatically go to those who need it. And across 31 pilot basic income programs , recipients spent an average of about 9.2% of their payments on housing and utilities. AdvertisementThe amount that the federal government spends on its housing assistance programs, mainly Housing Choice Vouchers and public housing, is determined by Congress each year. "Housing support across America is very fractured and variable," said Sean Kline, director of Stanford's Basic Income Lab.

Persons: —, doesn't, Matt Desmond, Chris Herbert, Ulbrich, Matt Turner, hasn't, Sean Kline, Matthew Fowle, Fowle, Kline, Herbert Organizations: Service, Homelessness, Business, Urban Institute, Assistance, Columbia University's, Poverty, Princeton, Harvard Joint Center for Housing Studies, Economic, Congress, Harvard, The New York Times, Department of Housing, Urban Development, Philadelphia Housing Development Corporation, University of Pennsylvania, UPenn's Housing Locations: Washington ,, San Francisco, Davos, America, Philadelphia

☆ Make America Build Again
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-16 | by ( Adam Rogers | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +37 min

America is the sixth-most-expensive place in the world to build subways and trolleys. The solutions will cost trillions of dollars and require a pace of building unseen in America since World War II. Perhaps the single most pressing question we face today is: How do we make America build again? "For this class of projects, federal environmental laws are more the exception." The prospect of overhauling our hard-won environmental laws might feel like sacrilege to anyone who cares about the Earth.

Persons: Anne, Marie Griger's, Griger, —, They're, Obama, I'm, we've, We've, I'd, It's, Matt Harrison Clough, Jamie Pleune, AECOM, Joe Biden's, There's, David Adelman, David Spence, Spence, James Coleman, NECA, Coleman, everyone's, Danielle Stokes, Nobody, Bill McKibben, Mother Jones, McKibben, Michael Gerrard, Columbia University —, they've, David Pettit, it's, Zachary Liscow, That's who's, Adam Rogers Organizations: RES Group, Environmental, Infrastructure Investment, Jobs, Land Management, Forest Service, University of Utah, Harvard Joint Center for Housing Studies, Brookings, Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, White, University of Texas, Greenpeace, Natural Resources Defense Council, Act, NEPA, Berkeley, University of California, University of Southern, Southern Methodist University, Ecosystems Conservation, GOP, Biden, Motorola, Telecommunications, Conservatives, Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, FERC, University of Richmond, UC Berkeley, USC, Star, Sabin, Climate, Columbia University, Natural Resources Defense, Republicans, Democrats, Management, Budget, Yale Law School Locations: Panama, Colorado, . California, Los Angeles, San Francisco, China, America, Washington, , Wyoming, Nantucket, New England, San Francisco ., University of Southern California, California, New York, Florida, Southern California, Las Vegas

☆ Opinion: My journey from a homeless shelter to the ballet stage
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-02 | by ( Opinion Steven Melendez | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +6 min

Editor’s Note: Steven Melendez is artistic director of New York Theatre Ballet and a subject of the new documentary film “LIFT,” available on Apple and Amazon. He was born in the Bronx, New York, and has danced as a soloist with Ballet Concierto in Argentina, a principal dancer with the Vanemuine Theater Ballet Company in Estonia, and for more than 15 years with New York Theatre Ballet. CNN —Thirty years ago, I lived in a family homeless shelter in New York City, where dreams and struggles often do battle. The LIFT program did not simply introduce me to ballet; it transformed my life. New York Theatre BalletThe rigorous training demands unwavering commitment, punctuality and the relentless pursuit of perfection.

Persons: Steven Melendez, Steven Melendez Rachel Neville, Diana Byer, Jacques d’Amboise, Talent Organizations: New York Theatre Ballet, Apple, Concierto, Vanemuine Theater Ballet Company, CNN, New York Theatre, US Department of Housing, Urban Development, Harvard Joint Center for Housing Studies, Coalition, York Theatre Ballet, National Dance Institute Locations: Bronx , New York, Argentina, Estonia, New York City, Bronx, America

☆ Who Will Stand Up for Renters? Their Elected Representatives, Who Also Rent.
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-21 | by ( Conor Dougherty | More About Conor Dougherty | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +2 min

“There is a pretty foundational bias against renters in American sociological and political life,” said Jamila Michener, a professor of government and public policy at Cornell. But the number of renters has grown steadily over the past decade to about 44 million households nationwide, while punishing housing costs have migrated from coastal enclaves to metropolitan areas around the nation. More salient to politicians, perhaps, is that renters are increasingly well-off — households that make more than $75,000 have accounted for a large majority of the growth in renters over the past decade, according to the Harvard Joint Center for Housing Studies. At the same time, the struggle to find something affordable has escalated from lower-income tenants to middle-income families that in past generations would very likely have owned their homes. In other words, renter households are now composed of families much more likely to vote.

Persons: ”, Jamila Michener, “ Organizations: Cornell, Harvard Joint Center for Housing Studies

☆ Forget about a housing market crash, Harvard researchers say. Here are the 4 reasons they say a repeat of the mid-2000s drop in home prices is unlikely.
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-24 | by ( William Edwards | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

They cited a strong labor market, low foreclosure rates, favorable demographics, and low supply. That was their biggest drop since the mid-2000s housing bubble, when home prices fell 27% over the course of a few years. As long as interest rates remain elevated, home price growth will likely continue to slow. First is that the labor market remains healthy. But so far this year, the labor market has continually surprised economists to the upside.

Persons: Hoff, Ian Shepherdson, Desmond Lachman —, millennials, Ellen Zentner, Morgan Stanley's, Z, it's, there's, Louis Organizations: Harvard Joint Center for Housing Studies, Harvard University, Federal Reserve, Harvard Joint Center for Housing, FHFA National Mortgage Database, Federal Reserve Bank of St, JPMorgan, Mortgage, Association

☆ Harvard researchers share 7 charts that show the struggles of buying and renting a home in America today, and their recommendations for solving them
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-22 | by ( William Edwards | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

The Harvard Joint Center for Housing Studies released their State of The Nation's Housing report. Harvard Joint Center for Housing StudiesOn top of that, mortgage rates have surged from around 3.3% in early 2022 to just under 7% today. Harvard Joint Center for Housing StudiesBlame that in part on falling building rates. Harvard Joint Center for Housing Studies"The construction slowdown in 2022 raised concerns about the nation's large and ongoing housing shortfall. To boost homeownership rates among minority groups, the researchers also proposed lowering credit score minimums for mortgages and taking into consideration other indicators of creditworthiness that aren't reflected in a credit score.

Persons: it's, homeownership Organizations: Harvard Joint Center for Housing Studies, National Association of Realtors . Harvard Joint Center for Housing, Harvard Joint Center for Housing, Harvard, Center for Housing

☆ Meet the 'boommates': These two baby boomers live together to cut costs and build a relationship
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-01 | by ( Jordan Pandy | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

Miller had an extra room in her home and thought why not find a roommate to help pay the mortgage. She called her local senior center, and they suggested she try Silvernest, a home-sharing platform founded in Colorado in 2015. According to Miller, Mears pays $650 on a month-to-month basis for her lodging and utilities. Longmont, Colorado, where Mears and Miller live, is located 40 miles north of Denver. After less than a week, Miller and Mears were eating dinner together regularly, taking turns cooking for each other.

☆ U.S. rents surge, leaving behind generation of younger workers
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-21 | by ( Rose Horowitch | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +6 min

REUTERS/Amr AlfikySept 21 (Reuters) - The cost of renting a home in the United States is surging and young workers have felt the sharpest pain, many of them taking on additional jobs or roommates to afford housing costs. Household rents in 2021 jumped 10% from pre-pandemic levels, according to Census Bureau estimates released last week. The 23-year-old spent a year in an apartment in New York City's Queens borough with a door that wouldn’t lock. Recent college graduate Caleb Seamon, 22, started delivering for Uber Eats alongside his full-time job at a think-tank to afford housing. Even so, Seamon says he only found a New York apartment because one of his roommate's parents acted as guarantors.

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