Sinking Land Increases Climate Change Risk To Coastal Properties

Sinking Land Increases Climate Change Risk to Coastal Properties

Studies of coastal properties around the world have found that the land there is sinking, which may be dramatically increasing the risks to these properties from climate change. This is due in part, ironically, to measures intended to deal with problems caused by other aspects of climate change. As a result, developers and homeowners will need to work more quickly and think more carefully about mitigating the risks that flooding and other climate factors may pose to their properties.

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Commercial Real Estate Lenders Face Financial Woes

Commercial Real Estate Lenders Face Financial Woes

Banks that have significant amounts of commercial real estate debt on their books are facing difficult financial times ahead, as they face significant risks of widespread default on many of their loans. This is due to problems with commercial borrowers struggling to pay off their commercial mortgages, which are structured in a way that makes the impact of their default much more serious. And unfortunately, these problems will likely continue to affect the market for at least another year or so as more commercial mortgages come due.

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Affordability Issues Plague Prospective Homeowners

Affordability Issues Plague Prospective Homeowners

People who may be interested in purchasing a home are struggling to do so, as they find themselves confronting affordability issues that prevent them from even getting their foot in the door. The combination of a high cost of living plus stagnant wages have meant that many people cannot keep up with high home prices, preventing them from even being able to put a down payment on a home. This is having a depressive effect on the real estate market that is unlikely to stop until wages go up or prices come down.

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Supreme Court Declines Challenge To Rent Stabilization Laws

Supreme Court Declines Challenge to Rent Stabilization Laws

The United States Supreme Court has chosen not to take up two lawsuits that were brought challenging New York’s rent stabilization laws. The lawsuits would have, if successful, potentially undermined the state’s regulations on rent stabilized apartments, potentially allowing landlords to increase the rates on regulated apartments dramatically. However, their rejection means that these laws will remain in place, at least for now.

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Demand For Mortgages Declines As Rates Go Back Above 7%

Demand for Mortgages Declines as Rates Go Back Above 7%

Mortgage demand has begun to flatten out after several weeks of growth, thanks to interest rates once again rising above seven percent. This increase in the mortgage interest rate is, ironically, fueled by positive economic data that increased the yield on 10-year Treasury bonds. However, this still bodes poorly for the normally robust spring season, where higher interest rates could place a hindrance on home sales.

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Harvard Report Says Half Of U.S. Renters Are “Cost-Burdened”

Harvard Report Says Half of U.S. Renters are “Cost-Burdened”

Affordability remains a major issue throughout the real estate sector, but a recent report from the Joint Center for Housing Studies of Harvard University emphasizes the issue. According to the report, approximately one half of all renters across the United States are considered “cost-burdened,” meaning they are spending more on rent than they can afford. It is a sign of the need to bring housing costs under control, as more and more people struggle simply to afford basic expenses.

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