First comes love, then comes … mortgage? A new study indicates that young couples in committed relationships have been far more likely than older generations to purchase homes before getting married.
Real Estate & Homes
Home Price Gains Continue Increasing Nationwide
Citing “steady employment and low borrowing rates” as well as inventories that have fallen “to their lowest post-recession levels,” the S&P Dow Jones Indices released Case-Shiller housing data that showed home prices jumping 8.1% from the previous year. When charted, the data looks like it’s been hit with a booster rocket, with the past …
The Bigger Box Store: Home Improvement Stores That Are Double the Size of Home Depot
The average grocery store in the U.S. measures under 50,000 square feet. Home Depots average about 100,000 square feet, and the typical Costco or Walmart Supercenter—generally considered the biggest of all big box …
If There’s No Inflation, Why Are Prices Up So Much?
Many of the costs faced by typical American households are rising faster than the official inflation statistics indicate.
North America Gets Its First Sustainable ‘Active Home’ — And It’s in the American Heartland
Over the weekend, an open house was held in the suburbs of St. Louis, Mo. OK, there were lots of open houses over the weekend in the region. But one in particular stood out, for it featured the first “active home” in North America.
Will Reform of Fannie and Freddie Kill the 30-Year Mortgage?
The sequester is all anybody wants to talk about. I get it: It’s the hip new crisis sweeping Washington. But remember Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac? You know, the once quasi-independent housing giants whose takeover by the federal government has cost taxpayers upwards of $190 billion thus far? Well, Fannie and Freddie are still owned by the …
Selling Your House? Choose Your Words Carefully
Certain phrases pop up again and again in real estate listings, and these keywords offer a good indication of the prices a property will command. A listing promising a “once-in-a-lifetime opportunity,” for instance, has an …
What Happens When the Fed Really Does Run Out of Ammunition?
The Fed has no good choices. If easy money ends, the economy will slow even more. But continuing the policy risks inflation
Home Prices Jump Again. Are We Out of the Woods Yet?
Home prices as measured by the S&P/Case-Shiller Home Price Index jumped 6.8% year-over-year last December, closing out 2012 with a strong showing, as they’d risen 5.5% on the same basis the month before.
Millennials Are Paying Off Debt — but That’s Not Necessarily Good News
A new study suggests that millennials are getting serious about paring down their debt. But a closer look at the numbers shows some troubling signs
Is the World on the Brink of a Currency War?
Economic policies that look like the start of a trade war are really aimed at addressing domestic economic problems.
Why Can’t This Economy Really Get Going?
A host of factors outside of the government’s control will likely hold back the economy for at least another year.
