Builder Magazine: Housing Data

The U.S. cities with the best parks

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 09:01:30 EST

Fast Company's Zak Stone explores the U.S. metro-scape for where you'd go if you want to live somewhere with plentiful, accessible, well-maintained parks. According to land-conservation nonprofit The Trust for Public Land: Minneapolis and New York, in that order, followed by San Francisco, Sacramento, and Boston, which tied for third. And the worst cities for parks?

America's 10 cheapest cities to live in

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 09:00:33 EST

Looking for the cheapest places to live in the U.S.? Kiplinger's Michael DeSenne analyzes the Council for Community and Economic Research's calculations of living expenses in 307 urban areas, and ranks the Top 10.

All focus on Phoenix: 7 fundamental improving trends

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 08:59:41 EST

The latest housing data out of Phoenix shows that the market is normalizing: inventories have stopped falling and home sales are rising even as the share of properties sold to investors is declining. The Wall Street Journal's Nick Timiraos taps local market expert Mike Orr to delve beneath the headlines. The WSJ is a paid-subscription site.

Boom cycle: counting all bicyclists

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 04:52:40 EST

Fast Company's Zak Stone reports on new ways to tally traffic volume ... of bicyclists.

Build a home with a 3D printer

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 04:52:35 EST

Movoto's Randy Nelson has figured out how much time-and money-it would take to print a house the same size as yours. Spoiler: It's a lot.

Students are piling on debt fast

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 04:52:30 EST

MarketWatch's Robert Schroeder reports that student loan debt has nearly doubled in the past five years, according to a congressional report released Tuesday, less than two weeks before interest rates on federally backed student loans are set to jump to 6.8% from 3.4%.

Light motif

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 08:40:33 EST

Houzz contributor and architect John Dorman posts on how architects use a variety of ways to engage our senses, especially with light.

More homeowners buying 'air rights'

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 08:40:28 EST

The latest trend in one real estate market has homeowners looking up. Some are paying hundreds of thousands of dollars for air rights, reports Heather Graf, KVUE TV.

America's top cities for venture capital

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 08:37:41 EST

Atlantic Cities' Richard Florida looks at cities data that show that, for venture capital, the Bay Area remains at the top, but several cities are starting to catch up.

The return of inventory to selected markets

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 08:37:32 EST

Redfin's Tim Ellis posts on Redfin's latest tally of supplies of for-sale inventory in its market universe. Here's a line-up of metros with the biggest deltas, up or down, for supply. Demand seems to be holding up as well.

California home prices jump the most ever in 33 years

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 08:37:25 EST

Bloomberg/ BusinessWeek's Nadja Brandt reports that California home prices rose by the most in three decades as a shortage of houses on the market spurred competition among buyers, per the California Association of Realtors.

Style standard setters

Mon, 17 Jun 2013 09:42:24 EST

The architectural style of a house can have a big impact on its value. Take a look at the most expensive home styles in the U.S. MarketWatch taps Trulia data to spin up a top 10 rankings pegged to homes' architectural genre.

Americans spend 41% more on mom than dad

Mon, 17 Jun 2013 04:29:24 EST

It must have been a bad year for Dads. For the first time in four years, the gap between what Americans plan to spend on Father's Day and what they plan to spend on Mother's Day widened. The Wall Street Journal's Phil Izzo runs the numbers. The WJS is a paid-subscription site.

Americans' outlook clouds, as fewer look ahead with optimism

Mon, 17 Jun 2013 04:28:52 EST

Americans in general should take a page from home builders. But they don't. Fewer of us are looking ahead to this time next year, imagining we'll be better off. Why? Uncertainty about jobs remains, and certainty about higher taxes gets clearer.

Where high-paying tech jobs are most plentiful

Mon, 17 Jun 2013 04:28:40 EST

Tech jobs are abundant in parts of the nation outside Silicon Valley. Here's where they are, per Business Insider's Julie Bort, with data from job hunting site Brite.

A coastal city's 'new normal:' wet

Mon, 17 Jun 2013 04:28:33 EST

The Economist looks at a climate change paradox: Even as seas have risen over the past century, Americans have rushed to build homes near the beach. Storms that lash the modern American coastline cause more economic damage than their predecessors because there is more to destroy.

Meet the New Vegas: The 10 Most Sinful Cities in America

Mon, 17 Jun 2013 04:28:25 EST

Move over, Las Vegas-there's a new capital of sin in America. We go Old Testament to find which cities best embody the Seven Deadly Sins.

House Kits And Affordability Don't Always Mix

Fri, 14 Jun 2013 04:43:58 EST

House kits aren't always affordable, but a few kit suppliers have come up with ways to reduce total construction costs.

A Prefab Home Strives to Keep Pace With Changing Technology

Fri, 14 Jun 2013 04:17:25 EST

Proto Homes markets its concept house as a product that can change with lifestyles and tastes.

Millennials Are Ready to Buy Homes

Fri, 14 Jun 2013 04:11:48 EST

Despite witnessing the housing boom and bust, millennials still see home ownership as an investment.