Archive for Economy
Illinois Homeowners Affected By Severe Weather Receive Recovery Aid
Following the U.S. Department of Homeland Security’s Federal Emergency Agency’s announcement that federal disaster aid is now available to the State of Illinois, it has ordered federal aid to enhance recovery efforts made by state and local governments in areas affected by the severe storms, straight-line winds and flooding that occurred from April 16 to [Read More]
NAHB Urging Congress to Keep Homeownership Affordable
The National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) is urging Congress to maintain its support for vital housing tax incentives, including the Low Income Housing Tax Credit, the mortgage interest deduction and real estate tax deductions, to meet the nation’s growing need for affordable rental housing and homeownership opportunities. U.S. Census data shows that more than [Read More]
Housing Affordability Still Remains High, Despite Rising Home Prices
Home prices in 150 U.S. cities saw their biggest year-over-year gains in more than seven years in the first quarter of 2013, but affordability still remains high in most markets, according to the National Association of Realtors (NAR). The NAR reported that the national median price for an existing, single family house was $176,600 in [Read More]
Remodeler Confidence Fell in Early 2013
Confidence in the remodeling market declined in the first quarter of 2013, according to a statement from the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB). NAHB measures remodelers’ confidence with the Remodeling Market Index (RMI), which fell six points to 49, citing concerns about growing construction supply and labor costs. An RMI above 50 indicates that [Read More]
Chicago New Homes Construction Expected to Rise in 2013
Construction is surging forward this year, and residential projects are attributed to the 7.4 percent expected rise in construction contract volume for 2013. Contracts for Chicago-area residential and commercial construction totaled $1.3 billion in the first quarter, up 19.3 percent from a year earlier, according to a new article in Chicago Real Estate Daily. Following [Read More]
New Single Family Home Sales Rise in March
In even more good news for the Chicago real estate recovery, new single family home sales rose 1.5 percent to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 417,000 units in March, according to recent data from HUD and the U.S. Census Bureau. “This is the second-best sales number we’ve seen since early 2010, and a good [Read More]
