Legislation

  • Roofer registration law protects homeowners

    Consumers will reap rewards from state homebuilders' legislative efforts to tighten contractor registration requirements.

     
  • Atlanta housing market suffers big setback

    Aug. 25--Retirees Burt and Deedy Cousar asked $549,000 for their four-bedroom, three-bathroom cluster home on a pleasant cul-de-sac in Sandy Springs when they put it on the market two years ago.

     
  • South Florida homes sales slip in July

    Aug. 25--After 23 consecutive months, Miami-Dade County's streak of rising year-over-year residential home sales came to an end in July, as single-family home sales slipped 8 percent compared to the same month last year, according to a report released Tuesday by the Miami Realtors.

     
  • Illinois measure would close property-tax loophole for mobile homes

    Aug. 19--DANVILLE -- In Illinois, there are $100,000 manufactured houses whose owners are not paying property taxes based on the fair market value of their home.

     
  • NAHB spent $600,000 lobbying in second quarter

    WASHINGTON - The homebuilding industry's main trade association spent $600,000 in the second quarter lobbying Congress, the White House and several government agencies on housing, taxes, construction lending and other issues, according to a disclosure report.

     
  • In a sluggish economic summer, no easy fix ahead

    WASHINGTON - The Federal Reserve has little power left to lift the economy out of its rut.

     
  • Roanoke Valley home sales slump in July

    Aug. 13--Federal tax credits promising thousands of dollars to buyers who signed a home contract by June's end boosted sales throughout the Roanoke region in the first half of this year.

     
  • Yakima home sales likely to slow with expiration of tax credits

    Aug. 12--YAKIMA, Wash. -- A last-minute rush to qualify for federal home-buyer tax credits provided one last boost for Yakima County's housing market during the second quarter of this year.

     
  • Baltimore-area home sales fell in July: Fewer are buying in the absence of home buyer tax credit

    Aug. 11--Home sales in the Baltimore metro area fell nearly 19 percent in July compared with a year earlier, a sharp decline that offered the clearest view yet of real estate activity after the expiration of a popular homebuyer tax credit.

     
  • Metro Milwaukee home sales plunge more than 45%

    Aug. 11--Sales of existing homes in metro Milwaukee dropped more than 45% in July from the same time last year, a plunge attributed to the expiration of federal tax cuts for home buyers and the slow economic recovery.

     
  • Home price losses ease in Baltimore area

    Aug. 06--The long decline in home prices all but ended in the Baltimore region during the first half of this year -- a ray of hope for beleaguered homeowners who have seen all their equity wiped out.

     
  • U.S. Senate approves higher fees for FHA loans

    WASHINGTON - Higher monthly fees are coming for consumers who take out home loans guaranteed by the Federal Housing Administration, the primary source of mortgages for first-time homebuyers.

     
  • Buffalo area home sales, prices set records in June

    Aug. 04--The end of the federal homebuyer tax credit spurred a flurry of activity in June, as closed transactions in Western New York soared 24 percent from June 2009 to a possible record and both the median and average prices set new highs.

     
  • Permits to build new homes fall as tax credit ends

    After a fairly strong start this year, new home construction continued to ebb last month in Pima County as the federal tax credit for homebuyers expired.

     
  • PulteGroup posts profit for Q2

    BLOOMFIELD HILLS, Mich. - PulteGroup Inc. returned to a quarterly profit for the first time in more than three years, the nation's largest homebuilder said Wednesday, boosted by its acquisition of Centex Corp. and as Americans bought homes ahead of the expiration of federal tax credits.

     
  • New Jersey governor vetoes $15,000 state tax credit for home buyers

    A $15,000 state tax credit for home buyers was vetoed Friday by Governor Christie, who cited its $100 million price tag and the state's budget problems.

     
  • Recovery mixed on strong earnings, weak home sales

    WASHINGTON - A flurry of strong earnings reports renewed Wall Street's optimism in the economic recovery, even as new data Thursday showed homes sales sinking and claims for unemployment benefits rising.

     
  • Obama poised to sign sweeping financial overhaul

    WASHINGTON - President Barack Obama aims to usher in a new era of consumer protections and banking restrictions Wednesday, checking off another legislative victory just before election-year politics overtake the rest of his major agenda.

     
  • Wichita new-home sales up in June

    July 20--Existing home sales in the Wichita area fell almost 10 percent in June from the previous year, but overall sales were down only 10 units as new home business perked up.

     
  • Pima County permits to build new homes fall as tax credit ends

    July 20--After a fairly strong start this year, new home construction continued to ebb last month in Pima County as the federal tax credit for homebuyers expired.

     
 
 
 
 

Local Markets

Featured Market

Houston, TX

News and information on permits, job growth, and construction trends

 
Market Hotness
12 mos. permits per 1,000 residents4.8%
Job Growth
Annual rate last 4 quarters-2.5%
Residential Permits
YTD change vs. prior year -36%