Real Estate - Real Estate, Updates, News & Tips

Apartment Rents Just Jumped Higher in Most Cities

Apartment rents climbed in 88 percent of the 250 largest U.S. cities, with the national average rent reaching an all-time high in July, RentCafe reports. Seasonal demand and a rise in rental activity have offset a wave of new apartments that have opened up this year, the national rental listing service notes.The national average rent climbed to a record high of $1,409 in July, up 2.8 percent year over year.The largest apartment rental increases w

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4 Tips to Help Buyers, Sellers Choose the Right Remodeler

Summer can be a popular time to remodel a home. Calling in the professionals may help ensure the job is done right and satisfactorily to help boost a home value, too. For homeowners looking to spruce up their digs, Rae Duncan of Rae Duncan Interior Design in Chicago offers some of the following tips to help buyers and sellers choose the right interior decorator and contractor:1. Sellers should choose a designer who not only can aid the inside of

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Would Your Neighborhood Score an ‘A’ or ‘F’?

Where are the best neighborhoods for buyers and investors? ATTOM Data Solutions ranked more than 10,000 neighborhood housing markets nationwide using the letter grades A through F. The real estate data firm factored in six metrics: affordability, home price appreciation, school scores, crime rates, unemployment rates, and property taxes.ATTOM broke down the common housing characteristics and trends among each grade.The top five neighborhood

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Residential Towers Dominate Skyscraper Construction

The construction cranes dotting the skylines of major North American cities are largely working on residential projects, according to the July 2018 Crane Index report by Rider Levett Bucknall, the international property and construction consultancy. The data released this week also shows the national tower crane tally is climbing. There were 423 construction cranes counted in July 2018, a more than 10 percent increase from to the 383 cranes cou

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Hike in Mortgage Rates Erases Affordability Relief

Borrowers got stuck with higher mortgage rates again this week. The 30-year fixed-rate mortgage climbed for the second consecutive week, averaging 4.6 percent. Mortgage rates are now at their fourth highest level of the year, Freddie Mac reports.“The higher rate environment, coupled with the ongoing lack of affordable inventory, has led to a drag on existing-home sales in the last few months,” says Sam Khater, Freddie Mac’s chief economist.

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Commercial Giant Makes Stock Market Debut

Commercial real estate giant Cushman & Wakefield made its debut on the stock market on Thursday, with shares jumping up to 7 percent in its initial public offering on the first day of trading. Cushman ended Thursday trading at $17.81 per share on the New York Stock Exchange.“Being public gives us a currency where we can accelerate our growth even above where it has been these days,” Brett White, CEO of Cushman, told CNBC.The company offe

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Empty Lot to Be Listed for Record $1B

An empty parcel in Los Angeles could potentially become the most expensive piece of real estate ever sold, CBS News reports. Labeled “The Mountain,” the 157-acre lot in Beverly Hills is the highest point in the 90210 ZIP code and offers up 360-degree views of Los Angeles County.The plot contains 17 parcels of land; six are zoned for homes. The land also comes with permission to build 1.5 million square feet of living space. Bloomberg estimate

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Wildfires Could Be Boon for Some California Markets

Eighteen active wildfires spreading throughout California have scorched an area larger than the entire city of Los Angeles, officials said Wednesday. Communities spanning from Redding in Northern California to Riverside County in Southern California are all under threat.The impact on the housing market, however, could be mixed. Realtor.com® notes that property values will most likely plummet in some areas and may take years to recover. But in so

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Inventory Climbs in a Third of Largest U.S. Cities

Housing inventories in high-priced markets are gradually making a turnaround. One-third of the largest 45 U.S. metros saw a yearly increase in housing inventory in July, realtor.com® reports. In some markets, the inventory increase has been dramatic. For example, in Silicon Valley, the San Jose metro posted a 44 percent increase in inventory compared to a year ago.The greater number of choices, however, doesn’t mean lower prices. The median li

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How Much Cigarette Smoke Decreases Resale Value

Smoking in a home can reduce that property’s resale value by up to 29 percent, according to realtor.com®. And home buyers who fall for a home that reeks of smoke shouldn’t assume the odor will go away as soon as the smoker moves out.Tobacco-specific nitrosamines and nitrous acid can cling to walls and other surfaces within the house. “You could breathe in several hundred nanograms of these carcinogens long after the last cigarette burned o

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