Big cities are back. When the COVID-19 pandemic began, many people fled busy city life for less crowded areas. But now they’re returning in a big way.Rents in the 10 largest U.S. tech cities—such as New York City and Austin, Texas—have surpassed their March 2020 levels by an average of 6.3%, according to realtor.com®’s monthly rental report. In most of the largest tech cities, the September rental growth rate is higher than prior to the
High lumber prices are returning, and home buyers should brace themselves for impact. The prices can have an effect on the cost of a new home as well as on decks and remodels.Lumber prices had been falling this summer, but that appears to have been short-lived. In August, lumber prices had bottomed out, but framing lumber is now up by 40% since then.Lumber prices still remain below the peak reached in May of about $1,515 per 1,000 feet. On Tuesda
Printed homes are coming to a new community in Austin, Texas. Lennar, one of the nation’s largest homebuilders, announced it was partnering with the startup ICON to build the largest community of 3D-printed homes to date. The builder says the high-tech construction method will allow it to overcome current labor and materials shortages that have been pressing on the new-home construction industry over recent months.3D-printed homes are touted as
Homebuyers are rushing to purchase new homes. Sales of newly built, single-family homes jumped 14% in September compared to August, reaching a six-month high, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development and U.S. Census Bureau reported Wednesday.Homebuyers appear to be shrugging off price increases, too. The median new-home sales price continued to increase to $408,800 in September, up 18.7% over a year ago.“Solid demand and ongoing bui
Housing demand has been on fire amid the pandemic, and home prices have skyrocketed in response. Many markets have seen double-digit percentage price growth since the pandemic began.For example, in Rochester, N.Y., where home prices have been particularly volatile, the median sales price has surged by nearly 170% from September 2020 to September 2021.The National Association of REALTORS® reports that the median existing-home price for all housin
The boom in home prices is helping state and local governments’ pocketbooks. Property tax collections reached their highest level since at least 2009, according to a new analysis from the National Association of Home Builders.Property owners paid $703.5 billion in the four quarters ending in the second quarter, up 13% for the year.Tax revenues for state and local governments can be volatile. However, “property tax collections have proven rela
Homebuilding has ramped up over the last decade and notably accelerated sharply in 2020 during the pandemic, according to the National Association of Home Builders. Builders applied for 134% more single-family permits in 2020 compared to 2011. Permits are used as a gauge to measure future construction. Multifamily construction permits are 139% higher in that period.Construction has increased the most in Texas, which nabs the top spot for activity
Single-family rents posted their fastest increase in more than 16 years Americans continue to desire larger living spaces amid the pandemic. Investors taking notice are flooding the market to capture more rentals.U.S. single-family rents were up 9.3% year over year in August, approaching double-digit gains, according to CoreLogic’s Single-Family Rent Index. The increase in August was more than quadruple the increase from August 2020. While that
Beyond the sentimental attachments that seniors have built for their homes, they also believe homeownership was the smartest financial decision they ever made, a new survey says.Nearly three in four seniors—74%—say that purchasing their home was their best financial decision, according to a new survey of more than 1,500 respondents ages 60 to 75 conducted by the American Advisors Group. Further, 73% of respondents say that their home has beco
Existing-home sales rebounded in September as buyers may have felt a sense of pressure as mortgage rates started to inch up. Existing-home sales rose by 7% in September compared to August. All major regions of the country posted increases last month, the National Association of REALTORS® reported Thursday.“Some improvement in supply during prior months helped nudge up sales in September,” says Lawrence Yun, NAR’s chief economist. “Housin
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