We often think of homebuyers as consisting of couples or families, but there’s a new brand of buyer out there and she has often has purchasing power to burn. According to MSN Real Estate, single women now account for a quarter of home sales, and that number has risen since the mid-90s. So what are [...]

Green Building Goes on a Budget Wall Street Journal “Casa Feliz is one of a growing number of affordable-housing projects nationwide that have been built “green”—that is, with nontoxic materials, highly energy-efficient appliances, and features such as green roofs and solar panels. Thanks to tax credits designed to attract private capital and aggressive cost-cutting on [...]

By way of the Daily 5 Remodel newsletter, we learn of a report that finds “Substantive growth in remodeling spending, coming off a three-year decline, seems likely in 2011,” according to the latest quarterly Leading Indicator of Remodeling Activity. The findings of that report are summarized in this release, which sums up the matter as [...]

Here’s a question from the Wall Steet Journal: If a city is shrinking and plagued by high unemployment, should it still earn the label of ‘most affordable’? The troubled city of Detroit was anointed that dubious honor on Wednesday by Coldwell Banker Real Estate LLC., which released a report comparing the asking prices for four-bedroom, [...]

According to Professional Builder, there’s another reason that houses are becoming smaller and cheaper: first time home buyers. Professional Builder points out that 8.4 million households bought a home between 2007 and 2009. And how many of them were doing it for the first time? 41 percent. That’s a very significant minority. It stands to [...]

According to the Wall Street Journal, “Home builders, who aren’t selling too many homes these days, appear to be using their downtime to sharpen quality and service.” It makes sense. Without the housing boom engine powering sales, builders all over the country have to re-tool their plans. Of course, we’re not saying that a few [...]

Writing for the website Old House Web, Conrad Neuf asks whether we’re approaching “the end of the American dream.” He talks about significant role home ownership has played in shaping the person he’s become. I rented before I bought my first house, and I was never happy with that concept; it always felt like I [...]

We want to know: How important is green to your customers, really? Most everyone would agree that green can be an attractive selling point — for some people. But how do homeowners feel about green? There can be a difference in perception between “green” and energy efficient.” Most people will eagerly replace appliances and devices [...]

Here’s some Monday morning fun for you homebuilders out there! Wood, stucco, brick…just some of the regular materials that regular houses are made of. Of course, shelter and home can come in any number of forms. MSN Real Estate recently listed a few. Here are our favorites. Converted churches: Soaring ceilings and gorgeous light. Airplanes: [...]

The Mortgage Mess’s Dirty Details Smart Money “The housing crisis is far from over. U.S. house prices remain about 30% below their mid-2006 peak. More than 3% of mortgage holders are in foreclosure, and another 9% are at least 90 days late on their payments.” Connect the Lots Big Builder “As the housing market fell, [...]