By Amy Connolly Home touring activity increased, mortgage-purchase applications are up and three Florida cities saw huge gains in new listings in the four weeks ending March 3, a new report showed. WASHINGTON – New listings rose 13% year-over-year nationwide during the four weeks ending March 3, the biggest increase in nearly three years, the real estate brokerage firm Redfin reported. After eight months of declines, February is the first month the number of homes for sale has increased on an annual basis.  The new listings helped bring the total number of homes for sale up 1.7%. At the same
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By Fatima Hussein The Treasury Department said the ruling only applies to the plaintiff and its members. Other businesses must follow the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) registry requirements. WASHINGTON — In a blow to the Biden administration’s effort to increase corporate transparency, an Alabama federal district judge has ruled that the Treasury Department cannot require small business owners to report details on their owners and others who benefit from the business. U.S. District Judge Liles C. Burke decided late Friday that the Corporate Transparency Act, a landmark U.S. anti-money laundering law enacted as part of the National Defense Authorization
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By Katlyn Brieskorn A new study found St. Petersburg to be the most affordable ZIP code in the state to buy property. The least affordable is Key Largo. TAMPA — If you are in the market to buy a house but want to save some money, you may want to check out the results of a recent study that found the “most affordable” ZIP codes to buy property in every state. American Shield Home said it determined which ZIP codes were the most affordable by using the U.S. Census databank to find the population of every ZIP code in the
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By Christopher Rugaber Fed Chair Jerome Powell said a balanced approach is needed in cutting the key interest rate. He offered no hints about the timing of potential cuts. WASHINGTON — Chair Jerome Powell reinforced his belief Wednesday that the Federal Reserve will cut its key interest rate this year but that it first wants to see more evidence that inflation is falling sustainably back to the Fed’s 2% target. Powell noted that inflation is slowing for both goods and services and did not express concern about the government’s latest inflation data, which showed some pickup in price increases in
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By Melissa Dittmann Tracey Color is a hot trend in home design but use caution when choosing one. Bright colors, like red and lime green, can turn potential buyers away. CHICAGO – There’s a reason why home stagers prefer white or neutral colors when preparing a home for the market. Some colors can be distracting and a turn-off to home buyers. Rethink a red-painted living room or dining area; red is the most off-putting color, according to a survey of home staging and design professionals conducted by the home remodeling site Fixr.com.  “Red is an extremely strong color and may
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By Na Zhao Private residential construction spending rose 0.2% in Jan. from Dec.; it’s up 12.5% year-to-year. Analysts cite the lack of existing home inventory as a factor. WASHINGTON – The National Association of Home Builders’ (NAHB) analysis of Census data shows that private residential construction spending rose 0.2% in January 2024, the second month of gains in a row. It stood at a seasonally adjusted annual pace of $900.8 billion. The monthly increase in total construction spending is attributed to more single-family construction. Spending on single-family construction rose 0.6% in December. This is the ninth consecutive monthly increase since
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By Alex Harris Florida lawmakers are expected to pass bills with strong consumer protections for the controversial Property Assessed Clean Energy home improvement loan program. MIAMI – Florida is on the verge of passing the strongest consumer protections in state history for a problem-plagued home loan program touted to help homeowners pay for energy efficiency projects like solar panels and hurricane protection like impact windows or new roofs. The Property Assessed Clean Energy program – commonly known as PACE – provides a funding option for people who don’t qualify for or want a bank loan. Instead, the often-expensive projects are
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By Natalia Siniavskaia NAHB: Young adults ages 25-34 continued the post-pandemic trend of moving out: The share of those living with parents or parents-in-law fell to 19.1% in 2022. WASHINGTON – Young adults ages 25-34 continued the post-pandemic trend of moving out of parental homes with the share of those living with parents or parents-in-law dropping to 19.1% in 2022. A geospatial analysis of the 2022 ACS data found there are substantial differences across states, with the Southern and Northeastern states registering some of the highest shares of young adults remaining in parental homes. Renters’ housing cost burdens explain half
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The switch to online records may be part of the problem. All of Florida’s 67 counties have some sort of property fraud alert program, but more people need to sign up. ORANGE PARK, Fla. – Across Florida, scammers are selling people’s land and even homes behind their backs. Officials are urging property owners to protect themselves this week. It’s called property deed fraud, and there’s been a big spike in cases here in Florida because the real estate market in the Sunshine State is hot. More than 54% of real estate professionals experienced it firsthand in just the second half of 2023. It happens when a scammer steals someone’s identity and title
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By Jing Fu CoreLogic Case-Shiller’s Home Price Index rose at a seasonally adjusted annual growth rate of 2.4%, slower than Nov.’s 3% increase. Miami’s price index rose 8%. WASHINGTON – National home prices continued to increase, hitting a new all-time high in December. Despite high mortgage rates, limited inventory and strong demand continued to push up home prices. Six of 20 metro areas, experienced negative home price appreciation in December. The S&P CoreLogic Case-Shiller U.S. National Home Price Index (HPI), reported by S&P Dow Jones Indices, rose at a seasonally adjusted annual growth rate of 2.4% in December, slower than
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