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Justin Sullivan/Getty Images North America/TNS

Trump, Pulte threats fuel $19.5 billion homebuilders rout

Consumer / Home and Consumer News /

President Donald Trump and Federal Housing Finance Agency Director Bill Pulte are fueling a deeper selloff in already struggling homebuilder stocks.

A series of social media posts, from the US president over the weekend and then from the FHFA director and real estate scion Pulte on Wednesday, contributed to a four-day losing streak for an S&P ...Read more

Real estate Q&A: How can I get my neighbor to keep it down during 5 a.m. workouts?

Consumer / Home and Consumer News /

Q: I live in an apartment, and my upstairs neighbor gets up to work out every day at 5 a.m. He’s often loud, dropping the weights and waking me up. I’m kind of at my wits’ end. I really don’t want to have to report him to the community, but I also need to get some sleep. What can I do? — Adrian

A: Living in an apartment comes with its...Read more

Myung J. Chun/Los Angeles Times/TNS

Almost no one is building new apartments in Los Angeles. Here's why

Consumer / Home and Consumer News /

Los Angeles developer Cliff Goldstein just completed a plush new apartment complex on the Westside, but that's the last one he's going to build for the foreseeable future.

Even though demand for housing in the region is red hot, many people who build apartments for a living have paused putting shovels in the ground because, they say, it's just ...Read more

Everyday Cheapskate: Make Your Own Mixes and Save a Bundle

Consumer / Everyday Cheapskate /

They're convenient and tasty, but have you ever considered the high cost of your favorite prepared mixes and spices?

In less time than it takes you to run to the market to pick up a box of Rice-A-Rani or Shake'N Bake, you could make them yourself -- and save a bundle in the process.

With each of these "copycat" recipes, I've indicated the ...Read more

Glen Stubbe/Minnesota Star Tribune/TNS

Minneapolis Fed's Neel Kashkari: Fed cuts might not lead to lower mortgage rates

Consumer / Home and Consumer News /

American consumers are waiting for the Federal Reserve to cut rates so they can buy or sell their homes, but Minneapolis Fed President Neel Kashkari said Tuesday that the long-awaited mortgage rate drop might not materialize.

There’s only so much money to go around, Kashkari said, and the amount of cash flowing into AI — though it’s ...Read more

Everyday Cheapskate: Which Bills to Pay First?

Consumer / Everyday Cheapskate /

If you don't have enough money to pay all your bills, which should you pay first, and which ones can slide for a while? That's the question frequently showing up in my email inbox these days. The past year has been so difficult for so many. And with each request for help I receive, the more my heart breaks for my dear readers going through such ...Read more

Everyday Cheapskate: Food Cost-Cutting Strategies for Every Lifestyle

Consumer / Everyday Cheapskate /

If it seems as though you never have enough money to consistently save some of it for emergencies -- consistent, regular deposits out of every paycheck that go straight into a savings account -- perhaps it's time to consider that you're handing over your savings to restaurants, drive-thrus, diners and coffee shops. Think about it.

No matter ...Read more

Nathan Howard/Getty Images North America/TNS

Why fears of a trillion-dollar AI bubble are growing

Consumer / Home and Consumer News /

For almost as long as the artificial intelligence boom has been in full swing, there have been warnings of a speculative bubble that could rival the dot-com craze of the late 1990s that ended in a spectacular crash and a wave of bankruptcies.

Tech firms are spending hundreds of billions of dollars on advanced chips and data centers, not just ...Read more

Everyday Cheapskate: How to Rake Leaves Without Breaking Your Back (or the Bank)

Consumer / Everyday Cheapskate /

Every fall, trees throw their own version of a ticker-tape parade, and like clockwork, we're the lucky ones who get to clean up the confetti. Leaves everywhere -- on the lawn, in the flower beds, and somehow in the dog's water bowl. Again.

But here's the good news: Raking doesn't have to cost a fortune or leave you flattened on the couch with ...Read more

Hannah Wiley/Los Angeles Times/TNS

This bill has been hailed a 'landmark' victory for California YIMBYs. But it only narrowly escaped defeat

Consumer / Home and Consumer News /

This year, San Francisco Senator Scott Wiener passed a bill that will allow mid-rise housing to be built near transit stops, a win for the pro-housing lawmaker who’d seen two previous attempts collapse before even reaching the Senate floor, blocked by lawmakers concerned about state interference in local land-use decisions.

On multiple ...Read more

Real estate Q&A: Who pays to replace hurricane windows removed during condo restoration?

Consumer / Home and Consumer News /

Q: My condo apartment’s back lanai has been undergoing concrete restoration for a year, and my unit was the first completed. There is an ongoing debate between the association and engineers about what to do with the hurricane windows and shutters on the lanai edge. Meanwhile, the association and contractors removed my hurricane windows due to ...Read more

Tim Henderson/Stateline/TNS

Home sales drop in Las Vegas, rise in Houston as market heads for worst year since 1995

Consumer / Home and Consumer News /

Home sales closings dropped in August and remain well below pre-pandemic levels as high prices and interest rates weighed on the market, according to an analysis this week by the Calculated Risk blog.

Home sales are on track for the worst year in decades, matching the 4 million annual sales in 1995, according to a separate realtor.com report ...Read more

Phillip Molnar/The San Diego Union-Tribune/TNS

'Bidding wars are in the rear view': San Diego home prices fall in US rankings

Consumer / Home and Consumer News /

SAN DIEGO — San Diego home prices were down annually for a second month as the region fell in a closely watched real estate index.

The San Diego metropolitan area’s home price decreased 0.66% annually in July, according to the S&P Cotality Case-Shiller Indices report released this week. Prices were down year-over-year by 0.61% the previous ...Read more

Karl Mondon/Bay Area News Group/TNS

San Jose to buy downtown site once proposed for major tech campus as it eyes the creation of a sports and entertainment district

Consumer / Home and Consumer News /

SAN JOSE, Calif. — San Jose has elected to purchase a prime downtown property once slated for a major tech campus, which could potentially aid the city’s vision of expanding its convention center and developing a sports and entertainment district.

The City Council has approved the $13.5 million acquisition of 447 S. Almaden Blvd – a 3.56-...Read more

Ken Lambert/The Seattle Times/TNS

Why Seattle-area homeowners keep vacant rooms instead of renting out

Consumer / Home and Consumer News /

In the midst of the Seattle-area housing shortage, hundreds of thousands of vacant rooms in big houses sit untapped as many homeowners are either reluctant to have a housemate or unsure about how to go about it.

Larry Crites is a longtime rental property owner living in Seattle.

He used to rent out the upstairs section of his first house. But ...Read more

Nick Wagner/The Seattle Times/TNS

Seattle-area owners of big houses stay put as downsizing costs rise

Consumer / Home and Consumer News /

Brenda Beeson loves her house. It’s where she woke up next to her husband each morning and rushed her daughter out to school. She never thought the house in South King County, Washington, once so full of life, could feel as empty as it does now.

Ever since her husband unexpectedly died in 2018 and her daughter moved out, four of the home’s ...Read more

Everyday Cheapskate: 7 Success Habits of Wealthy Individuals

Consumer / Everyday Cheapskate /

Habit is defined as behavior repeated so often it becomes almost automatic. I am in awe of the power of habit. It's a force to change your life, and it is available to anyone no matter the situation or the circumstances.

For five years, author Tom Corley observed the daily habits of the rich and the poor and documented his findings in his book,...Read more

Everyday Cheapskate: How to Unclog a Toilet -- Quick and Easy!

Consumer / Everyday Cheapskate /

No one likes to talk about it, but truth be told, it happens. Toilets malfunction. They get clogged. Sure, it's inconvenient, but more than that, downright embarrassing if you're somewhere other than the privacy of your own home. Here's a cheat sheet so you'll know ahead of time how to unclog a toilet.

STOP IT FROM OVERFLOWING

The moment you ...Read more

Dreamstime/Dreamstime/TNS

FTC sues Zillow and Redfin over rental listing deal

Consumer / Home and Consumer News /

The Federal Trade Commission is suing Zillow and Redfin for allegedly conspiring to eliminate competition for rental housing listings.

In a lawsuit filed Tuesday in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia, the FTC claims the real estate giants violated federal antitrust laws by entering into an illegal agreement to...Read more

Everyday Cheapskate: Opting for the Minimum Payment Changed My Life

Consumer / Everyday Cheapskate /

At the time, it seemed like a good idea. But going for the minimum payment option "just this one time" turned out to be the worst mistake of my life. The day I opened that door and walked through it, I altered the course of my life.

I reasoned that I didn't have enough money to pay the credit card balances in full, so what was I supposed to do ...Read more

 

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